Novel Insights to Assess Climate Resilience in Goats Using a Holistic Approach of Skin-Based Advanced NGS Technologies

The study investigated the impact of heat stress on two indigenous goat breeds, Kanni Aadu and Kodi Aadu, using advanced next-generation sequencing technologies. It found that heat stress significantly influenced hair characteristics, hair cortisol levels, hair follicular mRNA expression profiles, sweating rate, active sweat gland number, skin histology, and skin-surface temperature. The study also discovered that heat stress significantly altered the skin microbiome and gene expression in the goats, with 7993 and 2036 genes significantly expressed in Kanni Aadu and Kodi Aadu goats, respectively. Furthermore, heat stress resulted in changes in DNA methylation, with 50,560 and 40,648 differential methylated regions identified in Kanni Aadu and Kodi Aadu goats, respectively. The study concluded that heat stress has a significant impact on the skin microbial profile and gene expression in goats, which could have implications for understanding and managing the effects of climate change on livestock.