Abstract

Background: Subcutaneous fat deposition critically impacts duck meat quality and feed efficiency.ARHGDIB, a Rho GTPase regulator implicated in adipogenesis, remains functionally uncharacterized in poultry. Methods: We monitored growth and fat deposition in ducks from 30 to 70 days, performed transcriptomics on adipose tissue, and established an in vitro duck preadipocyte model to assessARHGDIBfunction via siRNA knockdown, Oil Red O staining, and RNA-seq. Results: Fat deposition peaked at 50 days.ARHGDIBexpression was lowest in fat and decreased during differentiation. Its knockdown significantly enhanced lipid accumulation, upregulatedPPARγandLPL, and altered the expression of 1681 genes enriched in oxidative phosphorylation, insulin/TLR signaling, and autophagy pathways. Conclusions:ARHGDIBacts as a novel negative regulator of duck subcutaneous adipogenesis by suppressing differentiation and modulating an integrated metabolic-inflammatory network, offering a potential target for precision breeding.