Functionally important small RNAs were first described in nematodes in 1993 [
1,
2]. However, it was not until 2001 that researchers began to understand the function of this family of RNAs that includes microRNA (miR) and to recognize that their significance was not confined to lower order organisms [
3,
4]. The small RNA classified as miR are short sequences, 18–26 nucleotide long, encoded by nuclear genes that produce characteristic stem-loop RNA structures when transcribed. During processing from the primary transcript, the mature miR sequence is loaded into an RNA:protein complex known as the "RNA induced silencing complex" (RISC) [
5,
6]. The sequence of the miR loaded in the complex targets the RISC to specific binding sites in the 3' untranslated region of mRNA transcripts, resulting in either degradation of the miR:mRNA complex or translocation to processing bodies. In either case, association of RISC with mRNA causes decreased translation of the targeted gene product [
6,
7]. As a result of decreased translation of their cognate targets, miR have been reported to guide developmental decisions including cell fate, cell cycle progression, apoptosis, adipocyte differentiation, and processes that alter muscle development and growth including myoblast proliferation, differentiation, and skeletal muscle hypertrophy [
8-
15].
The objective of the current research was to evaluate miR transcriptome profiles during skeletal muscle development in swine. MicroRNA were initially reported to have a role in skeletal muscle development utilizing mouse, drosophila, and zebrafish models. Three muscle-specific miRNA (miR-1, miR-133, and miR-206) were identified to increase in abundance during muscle cell differentiation [
10,
16,
17]. However, these miRNA have been reported to regulate different stages of myogenesis [
12,
13,
15]. MiR-133 increases proliferation of C
2C
12 myoblasts, whereas miR-206 and miR-1 promote differentiation [
16]. Research in livestock models has begun to evaluate the role these miRNA have in skeletal muscle development. Expression of the muscle regulatory factor, myogenic factor 5, has been reported to regulate miR-1 and miR-206 transcription level in a chicken cell culture model [
18]. In addition, over-expression of fibroblast growth factor-4 has been reported to decrease miR-206 abundance, resulting in developmental changes in the somite of developing chicken embryos [
19]. Muscle-specific miR have also been reported to regulate a gene that directly impacts economic traits in livestock [
20]. A mutation in the myostatin gene of heavily muscled Belgian Texel sheep creates a target site for miR-1 and miR-206 containing RISC complexes in the 3' untranslated portion of the transcript, resulting in decreased translation of the myostatin protein and consequent increase in muscle mass.
With the dramatic increase in identified miR sequences for multiple species including livestock species, a public database dedicated to the cataloguing of predicted and experimentally observed miRs has been developed (miRbase) [
21-
23]. In human, 678 miRs have been described (miRbase release 11.0, April 2008). However, genomic sequence scans and miR cloning results indicate that the actual total number of human miRs may be closer to 800 [
24]. Comparative analysis of these sequences indicates that they are highly conserved among species as diverse as nematodes and mammals, supporting the hypothesis that they are of central importance to biological processes. In addition, expression of miR genes is tightly regulated spatially among tissues and temporally within tissues during development in all species studied, indicating the importance of determining miR transcriptome profiles to fully understand their biological importance [
25-
27]. In order to identify miR and determine their role in skeletal muscle of livestock, we evaluated miR transcriptome profiles at specific stages of muscle development including proliferating satellite cells, three stages of fetal growth, day-old neonate, and the adult.