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This manuscript summarizes information on the diverse range of RNA molecules and their role as competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs). Moreover, it provides an overview of ceRNA regulatory networks and their applications in ruminant biology. Knowledge of co-expression networks has increased with microarrays, RNA-seq, and scRNA-seq characterizing molecular mediators across various biological scales, using sequences from numerous blood and tissue samples. By synthesizing existing knowledge, this study summarizes interactions between coding and non-coding RNAs through microRNA response elements (MREs), elucidating large-scale regulatory networks throughout the transcriptome that influence the expression and activities of various ceRNAs. Identification of non-coding RNAs with important regulatory functions will revolutionize understanding of RNA biology, shifting from an mRNA-centric model to a complex network of RNA crosstalk. The ceRNA networks offer a more comprehensive and arguably more realistic perspective compared to protein–protein interaction (PPI) networks and weighted gene co-expression networks (WGCN). These ceRNA regulatory networks can describe potential molecular regulatory mechanisms related to functional and economically important traits in ruminants, plus contribute to disease and pathology research, by elucidating pathogenesis and potential drug effects in disease and cancer models. Furthermore, they can provide insights into farm animal biology, e.g., reproductive traits in goats and sheep, regulation of fat metabolism in beef cattle, heat stress responses, and lactation regulation in dairy cattle, fertility and muscle characteristics in buffalo, and resistance to high-salt and water-deprivation conditions in camels. In conclusion, ceRNA and associated regulatory networks should promote a new understanding of molecular mechanisms and identify candidate genes and metabolic-signaling pathways in ruminants.

Sports diplomacy is regarded as one of the most important communicative components among nations in their international relations. Regarding the mentioned fact, the main objective of this study was to provide a paradigm of sport diplomacy in the foreign policy of Iran. This is a qualitative study with exploratory nature by applying the Strauss and Corbin grounded theory approach. The data collection tool was semi-structured interviews with 14 elites including sports experts and policymakers. Findings demonstrated 133 initial concepts in open coding, reduced into 27 categories, and categorized into six main themes to support the initial development of the model. The results showed that adopting appropriate strategies like managerial evolution, developing indigenous models, national brand-making through sports, educating and empowering human resources, legal and structural development of sports diplomacy, and cultural changes in Iranian professional sports could bring greater consequences that encourage governing bodies to alter attitudes toward the role of sports diplomacy, and to empowers foreign policy for strengthening mutual relations worldwide.

Paratuberculosis or Johne’s disease (JD), a chronic granulomatous gastroenteritis caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP), causes huge economic losses and reduces animal welfare in dairy cattle herds worldwide. At present, molecular mechanisms and biological functions involved in immune responses to MAP infection of dairy cattle are not clearly understood. Our purpose was to integrate transcriptomic profiles and competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network analyses to identify key messenger RNAs (mRNAs) and regulatory RNAs involved in molecular regulation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) for MAP infection in dairy cattle. In total, 28 lncRNAs, 42 miRNAs, and 370 mRNAs were identified by integrating gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses. In this regard, we identified 21 hub genes (CCL20, CCL5, CD40, CSF2, CXCL8, EIF2AK2, FOS, IL10, IL17A, IL1A, IL1B, IRF1, MX2, NFKB1, NFKBIA, PTGS2, SOCS3, TLR4, TNF, TNFAIP3, and VCAM1) involved in MAP infection. Furthermore, eight candidate subnets with eight lncRNAs, 29 miRNAs, and 237 mRNAs were detected through clustering analyses, whereas GO enrichment analysis of identified RNAs revealed 510, 22, and 11 significantly enriched GO terms related to MAP infection in biological process, molecular function, and cellular component categories, respectively. The main metabolic-signaling pathways related to MAP infection that were enriched included the immune system process, defense response, response to cytokine, leukocyte migration, regulation of T cell activation, defense response to bacterium, NOD-like receptor, B cell receptor, TNF, NF-kappa B, IL-17, and T cell receptor signaling pathways. Contributions of transcriptome profiles from MAP-positive and MAP-negative sample groups plus a ceRNA regulatory network underlying phenotypic differences in the intensity of pathogenicity of JD provided novel insights into molecular mechanisms associated with immune system responses to MAP infection in dairy cattle.

Health and well-being have become significant dimensions of urban sustainability, particularly in countries with rapid urbanization. Community sports affect the health and vitality of society's population. Although planning for city management has existed throughout history, an integrated structure of the role of sports in urban planning to improve the quality of life and health of citizens has not yet been defined. This study aims to present a community sports planning program in metropolitan areas of Iran. The research was qualitative, and was done using the grounded theory approach based on the systematic approach of Strauss and Corbin (1998). 13 participants were purposefully selected from experts in the field of public sports development for interviewing. The final model was based on 6 categories and 36 factors. Gender and infrastructure were the most contextual factors. Cultural and underlying factors were given more attention than casual factors. Among intervening factors, media, monitoring, and evaluation got more emphasis. The categories of infrastructure and planning were mostly emphasized in the strategies section. While, in the model implementation consequences section, cultural and social consequences were mostly emphasized. Through a participatory approach to sports development, metropolitan municipalities can better understand the needs of their citizens. A bottom-up or company-centric approach allows organizers to reconstruct sports presentation models based on each metropolis.

Background: There is growing interest in the genetic improvement of fertility traits in female goats. With high-throughput genotyping, single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) is a powerful tool for measuring gene expression profiles. The primary objective was to investigate comparative transcriptome profiling of granulosa cells (GCs) of high- and low-fertility goats, using scRNA-seq.Methods: Thirty samples from Ji’ning Gray goats (n = 15 for high fertility and n = 15 for low fertility) were retrieved from publicly available scRNA-seq data. Functional enrichment analysis and a literature mining approach were applied to explore modules and hub genes related to fertility. Then, interactions between types of RNAs identified were predicted, and the ceRNA regulatory network was constructed by integrating these interactions with other gene regulatory networks (GRNs).Results and discussion: Comparative transcriptomics-related analyses identified 150 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between high- and low-fertility groups, based on the fold change (≥5 and ≤−5) and false discovery rate (FDR

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to profound changes at various levels of society, and sports is not immune to this. It is very important to study and identify the consequences of COVID-19 in different parts of the sports in Iran. The aim of the present study was to identify the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on Iranian student sports with emphasis on beneficiaries. Methods: This qualitative study was an exploratory research and in terms of purpose was considered as applied research. The statistical population of the study included sports teachers, professors of Farhangian University, managers of the General Office of Physical Education and sports experts of the Ministry of Education which were selected through purposive sampling method. In-depth and semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants to collect information and theoretical saturation was obtained with 17 interviews. To analyze the data, the thematic analysis method was used. Findings: The consequences of COVID-19 pandemic on physical education and sports education consist of four main concepts which include “creating a passive lifestyle, behavioral and social harms, technological-digital development, and family sports”. Conclusion: Considering the results and effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is necessary to develop appropriate programs to use the opportunities and manage the challenges of the post-COVID-19 era in the field of physical education and sports education for students in Iran.

Mastitis, inflammation of the mammary gland, is the most prevalent disease in dairy cattle that has a potential impact on profitability and animal welfare. Specifically designed multi-omics studies can be used to prioritize candidate genes and identify biomarkers and the molecular mechanisms underlying mastitis in dairy cattle. Hence, the present study aimed to explore the genetic basis of bovine mastitis by integrating microarray and RNA-Seq data containing healthy and mastitic samples in comparative transcriptome analysis with the results of published genome-wide association studies (GWAS) using a literature mining approach. The integration of different information sources resulted in the identification of 33 common and relevant genes associated with bovine mastitis. Among these, seven genes—CXCR1, HCK, IL1RN, MMP9, S100A9, GRO1, and SOCS3—were identified as the hub genes (highly connected genes) for mastitis susceptibility and resistance, and were subjected to protein-protein interaction (PPI) network and gene regulatory network construction. Gene ontology annotation and enrichment analysis revealed 23, 7, and 4 GO terms related to mastitis in the biological process, molecular function, and cellular component categories, respectively. Moreover, the main metabolic-signalling pathways responsible for the regulation of immune or inflammatory responses were significantly enriched in cytokine–cytokine-receptor interaction, the IL-17 signaling pathway, viral protein interaction with cytokines and cytokine receptors, and the chemokine signaling pathway. Consequently, the identification of these genes, pathways, and their respective functions could contribute to a better understanding of the genetics and mechanisms regulating mastitis and can be considered a starting point for future studies on bovine mastitis.

Intramuscular fat content (IMF), one of the most important carcass traits in beef cattle, is controlled by complex regulatory factors. At present, molecular mechanisms involved in regulating IMF and fat metabolism in beef cattle are not well understood. Our objective was to integrate comparative transcriptomic and competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network analyses to identify candidate messenger RNAs (mRNAs) and regulatory RNAs involved in molecular regulation of longissimus dorsi muscle (LDM) tissue for IMF and fat metabolism of 5 beef cattle breeds (Angus, Chinese Simmental, Luxi, Nanyang, and Shandong Black). In total, 34 circRNAs, 57 lncRNAs, 15 miRNAs, and 374 mRNAs were identified by integrating gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses. Furthermore, 7 key subnets with 16 circRNAs, 43 lncRNAs, 7 miRNAs, and 237 mRNAs were detected through clustering analyses, whereas GO enrichment analysis of identified RNAs revealed 48, 13, and 28 significantly enriched GO terms related to IMF in biological process, molecular function, and cellular component categories, respectively. The main metabolic-signaling pathways associated with IMF and fat metabolism that were enriched included metabolic, calcium, cGMP-PKG, thyroid hormone, and oxytocin signaling pathways. Moreover, MCU, CYB5R1, and BAG3 genes were common among the 10 comparative groups defined as important candidate marker genes for fat metabolism in beef cattle. Contributions of transcriptome profiles from various beef breeds and a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) regulatory network underlying phenotypic differences in IMF provided novel insights into molecular mechanisms associated with meat quality.

Fatty acid metabolism in poultry has a major impact on production and disease resistance traits. According to the high rate of interactions between lipid metabolism and its regulating properties, a holistic approach is necessary. To study omics multilayers of adipose tissue and identification of genes and miRNAs involved in fat metabolism, storage and endocrine signaling pathways in two groups of broiler chickens with high and low abdominal fat, as well as high-throughput techniques, were used. The gene–miRNA interacting bipartite and metabolic-signaling networks were reconstructed using their interactions. In the analysis of microarray and RNA-Seq data, 1,835 genes were detected by comparing the identified genes with significant expression differences (p.adjust < 0.01, fold change ≥ 2 and ≤ −2). Then, by comparing between different data sets, 34 genes and 19 miRNAs were detected as common and main nodes. A literature mining approach was used, and seven genes were identified and added to the common gene set. Module finding revealed three important and functional modules, which were involved in the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) signaling pathway, biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids, Alzheimer’s disease metabolic pathway, adipocytokine, insulin, PI3K–Akt, mTOR, and AMPK signaling pathway. This approach revealed a new insight to better understand the biological processes associated with adipose tissue.

Objective: Football, as the most viewed event in stadiums overflowed with very many spectators, has turned into the most popular sport across the world. The purpose of this study was to compare the factors affecting the technical and ethical performance of professional football athletes off-field. Methodology: The research method of this research is descriptive survey implemented by completing a researcher-made questionnaire. The statistical population of the study included all athletes, referees, and coaches, members of the technical staffs and members of professional soccer clubs as well as members of the federation and football board of Tehran during the 18th round of the country premier league. The research sample was 384 people who were selected by purposeful sampling method and according to Morgan table. The validity of the questionnaire was evaluated by the professors of physical education and football experts and the reliability level was calculated to be 0.89 based on the Cronbach's alpha that was done by Exploratory Factor Analysis and Friedman test by SPSS version 24 and Liserl 8.8 software. Results: The present study was surveyed on the basis of effective factors off-field, that is the most important factors off-field were federation and family and the status of the club were the least important factor in the technical and ethical performance of professional football athletes. Conclusions: Supervision and education can play an important role, and family as the first social unit can be also of importance in this respect. After family, the FFIRI should take basic measures for culture-building and detailed reflections on its activities.

There is almost a global consensus over this fact that well-being is the ultimate purpose of any policy-making, especially in democratic governments. Participating in organized sports is regarded as one of the important social grounds (institutions) with the potential capability of supporting the mental health. High and long-term participation and attractive environments make organized sports a significant and positive instrument for facilitating the population level change in case of health treatments such as promoting the mental health, enhancing the emotional/social performance and the life quality related to social relationships. Taking part in sports spaces and fields or watching the sport matches create this feeling in the individuals that there is something going on that is far more important than the scores and results; as if the collective mind is given a new energy, and the individuals experience a sort of joy and happiness caused by participating in sport events or just watching them. Sports can be an attractive environment for supporting the subjective well-being, which can be realized by focusing on the importance of sports in childhood and adolescence, while supporting the subjective well-being in such periods and considering its positive effects on the future periods of life. Since subjective well-being is considered as a developmental index of societies and regarding the significant role of sports and physical activities in creating such feeling, it seems necessary that more attention be paid to sports and principled investments be done in this social institution, besides having responsible management and planning. The instances of such marks can be enumerated as the development of sport clubs, development of sport for all, building health roadin public places like parks and sidewalks, and providing sports and sports facilities for all categories and groups of the society regardless of gender, age and ethnicity.