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Volhøj T, Nielsen CK, Schjermer DM, Jensen NS, Jørgensen BM, Nielsen SS, Jensen HE. Prevalence and characterisation of band-shaped tail lesions in Holstein cows. Acta Vet Scand 2024; 66:19. [PMID: 38745340 PMCID: PMC11091988 DOI: 10.1186/s13028-024-00742-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2024] [Accepted: 05/06/2024] [Indexed: 05/16/2024] Open
Abstract
The aim of the study was to characterise and determine the prevalence of band-shaped tail lesions in Holstein cows. Lesions were present either as wounds or by epithelised granulation/connective tissue formations. Both types were characterised by a median localisation 7 cm from the tip of the tail, and they occurred on the dorsal aspect of the tail. From here they encircled the tail either completely or in varying degrees, and they were often present as isolated lesions (93%). The prevalence of band-shaped tail lesions was found to be 25% among 2099 cows examined in 16 Danish Holstein herds with a variation from 18 to 40% between herds. In the herds, the wound lesions and the connective tissue formations accounted for 22% and 78% of all band-shaped tail lesions, respectively. Among 458 Holstein cows examined at an abattoir the prevalence of band-shaped tail lesions was 23%, i.e. similar to the prevalence within the herds. At the abattoir the share of band-shaped wound lesions was 67% and the band-shaped connective tissue formation 33%. Associations between the occurrence of band-shaped tail lesions and parity and lack of the tail tip were observed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tobias Volhøj
- Vendsyssel Landdyrlaeger, Bredgade 80, Tårs, DK-9830, Denmark
| | - Cecilie Kirstine Nielsen
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Ridebanevej 3, Frederiksberg C, DK-1870, Denmark
| | - Ditte Marie Schjermer
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Ridebanevej 3, Frederiksberg C, DK-1870, Denmark
| | - Natascha Schou Jensen
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Ridebanevej 3, Frederiksberg C, DK-1870, Denmark
| | - Benjamin Meyer Jørgensen
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Ridebanevej 3, Frederiksberg C, DK-1870, Denmark
| | - Søren Saxmose Nielsen
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Ridebanevej 3, Frederiksberg C, DK-1870, Denmark
| | - Henrik Elvang Jensen
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Ridebanevej 3, Frederiksberg C, DK-1870, Denmark.
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Rajawat D, Panigrahi M, Nayak SS, Ghildiyal K, Sharma A, Kumar H, Parida S, Bhushan B, Gaur GK, Mishra BP, Dutt T. Uncovering genes underlying coat color variation in indigenous cattle breeds through genome-wide positive selection. Anim Biotechnol 2023; 34:3920-3933. [PMID: 37493405 DOI: 10.1080/10495398.2023.2240387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/27/2023]
Abstract
The identification of candidate genes related to pigmentation and under selective sweep provides insights into the genetic basis of pigmentation and the evolutionary forces that have shaped this variation. The selective sweep events in the genes responsible for normal coat color in Indian cattle groups are still unknown. To find coat color genes displaying signs of selective sweeps in the indigenous cattle, we compiled a list of candidate genes previously investigated for their association with coat color and pigmentation. After that, we performed a genome-wide scan of positive selection signatures using the BovineSNP50K Bead Chip in 187 individuals of seven indigenous breeds. We applied a wide range of methods to find evidence of selection, such as Tajima's D, CLR, iHS, varLD, ROH, and FST. We found a total of sixteen genes under selective sweep, that were involved in coat color and pigmentation physiology. These genes are CRIM1 in Gir, MC1R in Sahiwal, MYO5A, PMEL and POMC in Tharparkar, TYRP1, ERBB2, and ASIP in Red Sindhi, MITF, LOC789175, PAX3 and TYR in Ongole, and IRF2, SDR165 and, KIT in Nelore, ADAMTS19 in Hariana. These genes are related to melanin synthesis, the biology of melanocytes and melanosomes, and the migration and survival of melanocytes during development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Divya Rajawat
- Division of Animal Genetics, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, India
| | - Manjit Panigrahi
- Division of Animal Genetics, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, India
| | - Sonali Sonejita Nayak
- Division of Animal Genetics, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, India
| | - Kanika Ghildiyal
- Division of Animal Genetics, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, India
| | - Anurodh Sharma
- Division of Animal Genetics, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, India
| | - Harshit Kumar
- Division of Animal Genetics, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, India
| | - Subhashree Parida
- Pharmacology and Toxicology Division, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, India
| | - Bharat Bhushan
- Division of Animal Genetics, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, India
| | - G K Gaur
- Division of Animal Genetics, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, India
| | - B P Mishra
- Animal Biotechnology Division, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, India
| | - Triveni Dutt
- Livestock Production and Management Section, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, India
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Deering KM, Clarke LL, Lennix SV, Layne E, Long L, Businga N. Follicular dysplasia and hair loss in white-tailed deer ( Odocoileus virginianus). Vet Pathol 2023; 60:910-914. [PMID: 37408382 DOI: 10.1177/03009858231185106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/07/2023]
Abstract
There have been unpublished reports of a follicular dysplastic syndrome in adult white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus; WTD), known colloquially as "toothpaste hair disease." The current report aims to describe the gross and histologic lesions in skin samples from 2 adult WTDs that presented to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory with reports of hair loss in 2018. Both cases were grossly alopecic with sparing of the distal extremities and variably the head and neck. Histologic features included hair follicles and adnexa present in relatively normal numbers, dilated and misshapen follicles, and dysplastic hair bulbs. Hair follicles were empty, contained fragmented and irregular hair shafts, or contained concretions of keratin. Hair bulbs were rarely infiltrated by small lymphocytes, suggestive of alopecia areata as a cause of the gross appearance. This condition does not appear to be directly responsible for WTD mortality but presumably would predispose affected animals to greater environmental exposure. Evaluation of additional affected individuals is warranted to further evaluate for features of alopecia areata.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Lindsey Long
- Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Madison, WI
| | - Nancy Businga
- Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Madison, WI
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Laible G, Cole SA, Brophy B, Wei J, Leath S, Jivanji S, Littlejohn MD, Wells DN. Holstein Friesian dairy cattle edited for diluted coat color as a potential adaptation to climate change. BMC Genomics 2021; 22:856. [PMID: 34836496 PMCID: PMC8626976 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-021-08175-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2021] [Accepted: 10/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND High-producing Holstein Friesian dairy cattle have a characteristic black and white coat, often with large proportions of black. Compared to a light coat color, black absorbs more solar radiation which is a contributing factor to heat stress in cattle. To better adapt dairy cattle to rapidly warming climates, we aimed to lighten their coat color by genome editing. RESULTS Using gRNA/Cas9-mediated editing, we introduced a three bp deletion in the pre-melanosomal protein 17 gene (PMEL) proposed as causative variant for the semi-dominant color dilution phenotype observed in Galloway and Highland cattle. Calves generated from cells with homozygous edits revealed a strong color dilution effect. Instead of the characteristic black and white markings of control calves generated from unedited cells, the edited calves displayed a novel grey and white coat pattern. CONCLUSION This, for the first time, verified the causative nature of the PMEL mutation for diluting the black coat color in cattle. Although only one of the calves was healthy at birth and later succumbed to a naval infection, the study showed the feasibility of generating such edited animals with the possibility to dissect the effects of the introgressed edit and other interfering allelic variants that might exist in individual cattle and accurately determine the impact of only the three bp change.
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Affiliation(s)
- G Laible
- AgResearch, Ruakura Research Centre, Hamilton, 3240, New Zealand.
- School of Medical Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Auckland, New Zealand.
| | - S-A Cole
- AgResearch, Ruakura Research Centre, Hamilton, 3240, New Zealand
| | - B Brophy
- AgResearch, Ruakura Research Centre, Hamilton, 3240, New Zealand
| | - J Wei
- AgResearch, Ruakura Research Centre, Hamilton, 3240, New Zealand
| | - S Leath
- AgResearch, Ruakura Research Centre, Hamilton, 3240, New Zealand
| | - S Jivanji
- Massey University Manawatu, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - M D Littlejohn
- Massey University Manawatu, Palmerston North, New Zealand
- Livestock Improvement Corporation, Newstead, Hamilton, New Zealand
| | - D N Wells
- AgResearch, Ruakura Research Centre, Hamilton, 3240, New Zealand
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MIDESP: Mutual Information-Based Detection of Epistatic SNP Pairs for Qualitative and Quantitative Phenotypes. BIOLOGY 2021; 10:biology10090921. [PMID: 34571798 PMCID: PMC8469369 DOI: 10.3390/biology10090921] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2021] [Revised: 09/09/2021] [Accepted: 09/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Simple Summary The interactions between SNPs, which are known as epistasis, can strongly influence the phenotype. Their detection is still a challenge, which is made even more difficult through the existence of background associations that can hide correct epistatic interactions. To address the limitations of existing methods, we present in this study our novel method MIDESP for the detection of epistatic SNP pairs. It is the first mutual information-based method that can be applied to both qualitative and quantitative phenotypes and which explicitly accounts for background associations in the dataset. Abstract The interactions between SNPs result in a complex interplay with the phenotype, known as epistasis. The knowledge of epistasis is a crucial part of understanding genetic causes of complex traits. However, due to the enormous number of SNP pairs and their complex relationship to the phenotype, identification still remains a challenging problem. Many approaches for the detection of epistasis have been developed using mutual information (MI) as an association measure. However, these methods have mainly been restricted to case–control phenotypes and are therefore of limited applicability for quantitative traits. To overcome this limitation of MI-based methods, here, we present an MI-based novel algorithm, MIDESP, to detect epistasis between SNPs for qualitative as well as quantitative phenotypes. Moreover, by incorporating a dataset-dependent correction technique, we deal with the effect of background associations in a genotypic dataset to separate correct epistatic interaction signals from those of false positive interactions resulting from the effect of single SNP×phenotype associations. To demonstrate the effectiveness of MIDESP, we apply it on two real datasets with qualitative and quantitative phenotypes, respectively. Our results suggest that by eliminating the background associations, MIDESP can identify important genes, which play essential roles for bovine tuberculosis or the egg weight of chickens.
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A Large-Scale Genome-Wide Association Study of Epistasis Effects of Production Traits and Daughter Pregnancy Rate in U.S. Holstein Cattle. Genes (Basel) 2021; 12:genes12071089. [PMID: 34356105 PMCID: PMC8304971 DOI: 10.3390/genes12071089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2021] [Revised: 07/14/2021] [Accepted: 07/14/2021] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Epistasis is widely considered important, but epistasis studies lag those of SNP effects. Genome-wide association study (GWAS) using 76,109 SNPs and 294,079 first-lactation Holstein cows was conducted for testing pairwise epistasis effects of five production traits and three fertility traits: milk yield (MY), fat yield (FY), protein yield (PY), fat percentage (FPC), protein percentage (PPC), and daughter pregnancy rate (DPR). Among the top 50,000 pairwise epistasis effects of each trait, the five production traits had large chromosome regions with intra-chromosome epistasis. The percentage of inter-chromosome epistasis effects was 1.9% for FPC, 1.6% for PPC, 10.6% for MY, 29.9% for FY, 39.3% for PY, and 84.2% for DPR. Of the 50,000 epistasis effects, the number of significant effects with log10(1/p) ≥ 12 was 50,000 for FPC and PPC, and 10,508, 4763, 4637 and 1 for MY, FY, PY and DPR, respectively, and A × A effects were the most frequent epistasis effects for all traits. Majority of the inter-chromosome epistasis effects of FPC across all chromosomes involved a Chr14 region containing DGAT1, indicating a potential regulatory role of this Chr14 region affecting all chromosomes for FPC. The epistasis results provided new understanding about the genetic mechanism underlying quantitative traits in Holstein cattle.
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Bovo S, Schiavo G, Kazemi H, Moscatelli G, Ribani A, Ballan M, Bonacini M, Prandi M, Dall'Olio S, Fontanesi L. Exploiting within-breed variability in the autochthonous Reggiana breed identified several candidate genes affecting pigmentation-related traits, stature and udder defects in cattle. Anim Genet 2021; 52:579-597. [PMID: 34182594 PMCID: PMC8519023 DOI: 10.1111/age.13109] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/11/2021] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Autochthonous cattle breeds constitute important reservoirs of genetic diversity. Reggiana is an Italian local cattle breed reared in the north of Italy for the production of a mono‐breed Parmigiano–Reggiano cheese. Reggiana cattle usually have a classical solid red coat colour and pale muzzle. As part of the strategies designed for the sustainable conservation of this genetic resource, we investigated at the genome‐wise level the within‐breed detected variability of three pigmentation‐related traits (intensity of red coat colour, based on three classes – light/diluted, normal and dark; spotted patterns/piebaldism that sometime emerge in the breed; muzzle colour – pink/pale, grey and black), stature, presence/absence and number of supernumerary teats and teat length. A total of 1776 Reggiana cattle (about two‐thirds of the extant breed population) were genotyped with the GeneSeek GGP Bovine 150k SNP array and single‐marker and haplotype‐based GWASs were carried out. The results indicated that two main groups of genetic factors affect the intensity of red coat colour: darkening genes (including EDN3 and a few other genes) and diluting genes (including PMEL and a few other genes). Muzzle colour was mainly determined by MC1R gene markers. Piebaldism was mainly associated with KIT gene markers. Stature was associated with BTA6 markers upstream of the NCAPG–LCORL genes. Teat defects were associated with TBX3/TBX5, MCC and LGR5 genes. Overall, the identified genomic regions not only can be directly used in selection plans in the Reggiana breed, but also contribute to clarifying the genetic mechanisms involved in determining exterior traits in cattle.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Bovo
- Division of Animal Sciences, Department of Agricultural and Food Science, University of Bologna, Viale Giuseppe Fanin 46, Bologna, 40127, Italy
| | - G Schiavo
- Division of Animal Sciences, Department of Agricultural and Food Science, University of Bologna, Viale Giuseppe Fanin 46, Bologna, 40127, Italy
| | - H Kazemi
- Division of Animal Sciences, Department of Agricultural and Food Science, University of Bologna, Viale Giuseppe Fanin 46, Bologna, 40127, Italy
| | - G Moscatelli
- Division of Animal Sciences, Department of Agricultural and Food Science, University of Bologna, Viale Giuseppe Fanin 46, Bologna, 40127, Italy
| | - A Ribani
- Division of Animal Sciences, Department of Agricultural and Food Science, University of Bologna, Viale Giuseppe Fanin 46, Bologna, 40127, Italy
| | - M Ballan
- Division of Animal Sciences, Department of Agricultural and Food Science, University of Bologna, Viale Giuseppe Fanin 46, Bologna, 40127, Italy
| | - M Bonacini
- Associazione Nazionale Allevatori Bovini di Razza Reggiana (ANABORARE), Via Masaccio 11, Reggio Emilia, 42124, Italy
| | - M Prandi
- Associazione Nazionale Allevatori Bovini di Razza Reggiana (ANABORARE), Via Masaccio 11, Reggio Emilia, 42124, Italy
| | - S Dall'Olio
- Division of Animal Sciences, Department of Agricultural and Food Science, University of Bologna, Viale Giuseppe Fanin 46, Bologna, 40127, Italy
| | - L Fontanesi
- Division of Animal Sciences, Department of Agricultural and Food Science, University of Bologna, Viale Giuseppe Fanin 46, Bologna, 40127, Italy
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Rovelli G, Ceccobelli S, Perini F, Demir E, Mastrangelo S, Conte G, Abeni F, Marletta D, Ciampolini R, Cassandro M, Bernabucci U, Lasagna E. The genetics of phenotypic plasticity in livestock in the era of climate change: a review. ITALIAN JOURNAL OF ANIMAL SCIENCE 2020. [DOI: 10.1080/1828051x.2020.1809540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Giacomo Rovelli
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Ambientali, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
| | - Simone Ceccobelli
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Ambientali, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Ancona, Italy
| | - Francesco Perini
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Ambientali, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
| | - Eymen Demir
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Ambientali, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
- Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Akdeniz University, Antalya, Turkey
| | - Salvatore Mastrangelo
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Forestali, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Conte
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Agro-Ambientali, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | - Fabio Abeni
- Centro di ricerca Zootecnia e Acquacoltura, Consiglio per la ricerca in agricoltura e l’analisi dell’economia agraria (CREA), Lodi, Italy
| | - Donata Marletta
- Dipartimento di Agricoltura, Alimentazione e Ambiente, University of Catania, Catania, Italy
| | | | - Martino Cassandro
- Dipartimento di Agronomia, Animali, Alimenti, Risorse naturali e Ambiente, University of Padova, Legnaro, Italy
| | - Umberto Bernabucci
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie e Forestali, Università della Tuscia, Viterbo, Italy
| | - Emiliano Lasagna
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Ambientali, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
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Indication of Premelanosome Protein (PMEL) Expression Outside of Pigmented Bovine Skin Suggests Functions Beyond Eumelanogenesis. Genes (Basel) 2020; 11:genes11070788. [PMID: 32668786 PMCID: PMC7397160 DOI: 10.3390/genes11070788] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2020] [Revised: 06/25/2020] [Accepted: 07/07/2020] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
The premelanosome protein (PMEL) is important for fibril formation within melanosomes during vertebrate melanogenesis. Fibrils form a matrix for pigment deposition within pigmented tissues such as skin and hair. PMEL mutations are known to modulate eumelanic pigmentation in vertebrates. However, in bovines, PMEL mutations were also found to alter pheomelanic pigmentation resulting in coat color dilution. Furthermore, epistatic effects of a mutated PMEL allele were detected in the phenotypic expression of the bovine hair defect "rat-tail syndrome" (RTS) characterized by charcoal coat color and hair deformation. Reports about PMEL gene expression in non-pigmented tissues raised the hypothesis that there may be unknown functions of the PMEL protein beyond eumelanin deposition to PMEL fibrils. In our study, we analysed the PMEL protein expression in pigmented skin and non-pigmented bovine tissues (non-pigmented skin, thyroid gland, rumen, liver, kidney, and adrenal gland cortex). We found that a processed form of the bovine PMEL protein is expressed in pigmented as well as in non-pigmented tissues, which is in line with gene expression data from targeted RT-PCR and whole transcriptome RNAseq analysis. The PMEL protein is located in membranes and within the cytosol of epithelial cells. Based on our data from bovine tissues, we concluded that at least in cattle PMEL potentially has additional, yet unexplored functions, which might contribute to effects of PMEL mutations on pheomelanin coat color dilution and charcoal coat color in RTS animals. However, indication of PMEL protein in unpigmented cells and tissues will require further confirmation in the future, because there have been no confirmed reports before, which had detected bovine PMEL protein with specific antibodies either in pigmented or unpigmented tissue.
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Davis SR, Spelman RJ, Littlejohn MD. BREEDING AND GENETICS SYMPOSIUM:Breeding heat tolerant dairy cattle: the case for introgression of the "slick" prolactin receptor variant into dairy breeds. J Anim Sci 2017; 95:1788-1800. [PMID: 28464106 DOI: 10.2527/jas.2016.0956] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Increasing environmental temperatures are a threat to the sustainability of livestock production and, because of the high metabolic demands of lactation, to dairy production in particular. Summer heat waves in temperate climates reduce feed intake, milk production, and cow comfort. In extreme heat events, there is an increase in cow mortality. In tropical climates, dairy cattle are mostly (zebu) type or zebu crossbred with temperate dairy breeds. Crossbreeding is undertaken to combine the heat tolerance and tick resistance of zebu with the productivity of temperate dairy breeds. In the absence of improved heat tolerance, milk production and fertility of temperate cattle is severely impaired. We have recently identified a key role for the prolactin pathway in regulating heat tolerance. A de novo mutation in prolactin that impairs prolactin activity was discovered in hairy and heat intolerant, New Zealand dairy cattle. The phenotypes produced were remarkably similar to those seen in fescue toxicosis, a syndrome seen in grazing cattle in the U.S. where ingestion of ergovaline, a fungal toxin from infected pasture, inhibits prolactin secretion. Recognition of the role of prolactin in hairy cattle led us to identify a deletion in exon 10 of the long-form of the prolactin receptor in Senepol cattle that causes truncation of the protein and determines the slick coat and heat tolerance traits found in this , beef breed. The short form of the prolactin receptor is predicted to be unaffected by the deletion. Knowledge of this dominant mutation has provided the impetus to begin a crossbreeding program to investigate performance and heat tolerance of temperate dairy cattle carrying the slick, prolactin receptor variant. The perceived opportunity is to introgress this variant into temperate dairy cattle to enable performance and welfare improvement in hot climates. Heat tolerance of cattle with slick coats appears to be mostly associated with coat type although sweating ability may also be enhanced. Further investigation is required of performance traits in cows homozygous for the slick variant because the published data are almost exclusively from heterozygous animals. Combination of the slick mutation with other favorable genes for heat tolerance, especially those for coat color, will be particularly enabled by gene editing technologies, offering opportunities for further improvement in bovine thermotolerance.
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Brand B, Scheinhardt MO, Friedrich J, Zimmer D, Reinsch N, Ponsuksili S, Schwerin M, Ziegler A. Adrenal cortex expression quantitative trait loci in a German Holstein × Charolais cross. BMC Genet 2016; 17:135. [PMID: 27716033 PMCID: PMC5053117 DOI: 10.1186/s12863-016-0442-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2016] [Accepted: 09/28/2016] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The importance of the adrenal gland in regard to lactation and reproduction in cattle has been recognized early. Caused by interest in animal welfare and the impact of stress on economically important traits in farm animals the adrenal gland and its function within the stress response is of increasing interest. However, the molecular mechanisms and pathways involved in stress-related effects on economically important traits in farm animals are not fully understood. Gene expression is an important mechanism underlying complex traits, and genetic variants affecting the transcript abundance are thought to influence the manifestation of an expressed phenotype. We therefore investigated the genetic background of adrenocortical gene expression by applying an adaptive linear rank test to identify genome-wide expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) for adrenal cortex transcripts in cattle. Results A total of 10,986 adrenal cortex transcripts and 37,204 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were analysed in 145 F2 cows of a Charolais × German Holstein cross. We identified 505 SNPs that were associated with the abundance of 129 transcripts, comprising 482 cis effects and 17 trans effects. These SNPs were located on all chromosomes but X, 16, 24 and 28. Associated genes are mainly involved in molecular and cellular functions comprising free radical scavenging, cellular compromise, cell morphology and lipid metabolism, including genes such as CYP27A1 and LHCGR that have been shown to affect economically important traits in cattle. Conclusions In this study we showed that adrenocortical eQTL affect the expression of genes known to contribute to the phenotypic manifestation in cattle. Furthermore, some of the identified genes and related molecular pathways were previously shown to contribute to the phenotypic variation of behaviour, temperament and growth at the onset of puberty in the same population investigated here. We conclude that eQTL analysis appears to be a useful approach providing insight into the molecular and genetic background of complex traits in cattle and will help to understand molecular networks involved. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12863-016-0442-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bodo Brand
- Institute for Genome Biology, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology, Wilhelm-Stahl-Allee, Dummerstorf, Germany.,Current affiliation: Institute for Farm Animal Research and Technology, University of Rostock, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg, 18059, Rostock, Germany
| | - Markus O Scheinhardt
- Institute of Medical Biometry and Statistics, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Juliane Friedrich
- Institute for Farm Animal Research and Technology, University of Rostock, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg, Rostock, Germany
| | - Daisy Zimmer
- Institute for Farm Animal Research and Technology, University of Rostock, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg, Rostock, Germany
| | - Norbert Reinsch
- Institute for Genetics and Biometry, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology, Wilhelm-Stahl-Allee, Dummerstorf, Germany
| | - Siriluck Ponsuksili
- Institute for Genome Biology, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology, Wilhelm-Stahl-Allee, Dummerstorf, Germany
| | - Manfred Schwerin
- Institute for Genome Biology, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology, Wilhelm-Stahl-Allee, Dummerstorf, Germany.,Institute for Farm Animal Research and Technology, University of Rostock, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg, Rostock, Germany
| | - Andreas Ziegler
- Institute of Medical Biometry and Statistics, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee, Lübeck, Germany. .,Center for Clinical Trials, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee, Lübeck, Germany. .,School of Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa.
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