1
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Head ST, Dezem F, Todor A, Yang J, Plummer J, Gayther S, Kar S, Schildkraut J, Epstein MP. Cis- and trans-eQTL TWASs of breast and ovarian cancer identify more than 100 susceptibility genes in the BCAC and OCAC consortia. Am J Hum Genet 2024; 111:1084-1099. [PMID: 38723630 PMCID: PMC11179407 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2024.04.012] [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: 10/24/2023] [Revised: 04/11/2024] [Accepted: 04/16/2024] [Indexed: 05/21/2024] Open
Abstract
Transcriptome-wide association studies (TWASs) have investigated the role of genetically regulated transcriptional activity in the etiologies of breast and ovarian cancer. However, methods performed to date have focused on the regulatory effects of risk-associated SNPs thought to act in cis on a nearby target gene. With growing evidence for distal (trans) regulatory effects of variants on gene expression, we performed TWASs of breast and ovarian cancer using a Bayesian genome-wide TWAS method (BGW-TWAS) that considers effects of both cis- and trans-expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs). We applied BGW-TWAS to whole-genome and RNA sequencing data in breast and ovarian tissues from the Genotype-Tissue Expression project to train expression imputation models. We applied these models to large-scale GWAS summary statistic data from the Breast Cancer and Ovarian Cancer Association Consortia to identify genes associated with risk of overall breast cancer, non-mucinous epithelial ovarian cancer, and 10 cancer subtypes. We identified 101 genes significantly associated with risk with breast cancer phenotypes and 8 with ovarian phenotypes. These loci include established risk genes and several novel candidate risk loci, such as ACAP3, whose associations are predominantly driven by trans-eQTLs. We replicated several associations using summary statistics from an independent GWAS of these cancer phenotypes. We further used genotype and expression data in normal and tumor breast tissue from the Cancer Genome Atlas to examine the performance of our trained expression imputation models. This work represents an in-depth look into the role of trans eQTLs in the complex molecular mechanisms underlying these diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Taylor Head
- Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Felipe Dezem
- Department of Developmental Neurobiology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Andrei Todor
- Department of Human Genetics, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Jingjing Yang
- Department of Human Genetics, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Jasmine Plummer
- Department of Developmental Neurobiology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Simon Gayther
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Cedars Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Siddhartha Kar
- Early Cancer Institute, Department of Oncology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0XZ, UK
| | - Joellen Schildkraut
- Department of Epidemiology, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Michael P Epstein
- Department of Human Genetics, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
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2
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Alsegehy S, Southey BR, Hernandez AG, Rund LA, Antonson AM, Nowak RA, Johnson RW, Rodriguez-Zas SL. Epigenetic disruptions in the offspring hypothalamus in response to maternal infection. Gene 2024; 910:148329. [PMID: 38431234 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2024.148329] [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] [Received: 01/11/2024] [Revised: 02/16/2024] [Accepted: 02/27/2024] [Indexed: 03/05/2024]
Abstract
DNA methylation is an epigenetic modification that can alter gene expression, and the incidence can vary across developmental stages, inflammatory conditions, and sexes. The effects of viral maternal viral infection and sex on the DNA methylation patterns were studied in the hypothalamus of a pig model of immune activation during development. DNA methylation at single-base resolution in regions of high CpG density was measured on 24 individual hypothalamus samples using reduced representation bisulfite sequencing. Differential over- and under-methylated sites were identified and annotated to proximal genes and corresponding biological processes. A total of 120 sites were differentially methylated (FDR-adjusted p-value < 0.05) between maternal infection or sex groups. Among the 66 sites differentially methylated between groups exposed to inflammatory signals and control, most sites were over-methylated in the challenged group and included sites in the promoter regions of genes SIRT3 and NRBP1. Among the 54 differentially methylated sites between females and males, most sites were over-methylated in females and included sites in the promoter region of genes TNC and EIF4G1. The analysis of the genes proximal to the differentially methylated sites suggested that biological processes potentially impacted include immune response, neuron migration and ensheathment, peptide signaling, adaptive thermogenesis, and tissue development. These results suggest that translational studies should consider that the prolonged effect of maternal infection during gestation may be enacted through epigenetic regulatory mechanisms that may differ between sexes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samah Alsegehy
- Informatics Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61820, USA
| | - Bruce R Southey
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
| | - Alvaro G Hernandez
- Roy J. Carver Biotechnology Center, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
| | - Lauretta A Rund
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
| | - Adrienne M Antonson
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA; Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA; Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
| | - Romana A Nowak
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA; Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
| | - Rodney W Johnson
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA; Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA; Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA; Division of Nutritional Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
| | - Sandra L Rodriguez-Zas
- Informatics Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61820, USA; Department of Animal Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA; Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA; Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA; Division of Nutritional Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA; Department of Statistics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61820, USA.
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3
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Huo L, Zhang X, Pang Y, Qi Y, Ren S, Wu F, Shang Y, Xi J. Expression and Mutation of SLC45A2 Affects Iris Color in Quail. J Poult Sci 2024; 61:2024015. [PMID: 38818526 PMCID: PMC11130394 DOI: 10.2141/jpsa.2024015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2024] [Accepted: 05/09/2024] [Indexed: 06/01/2024] Open
Abstract
Iris color is a prominent phenotypic feature of quail. To understand the mechanism of melanin deposition related to quail iris color, iris tissues were selected from Beijing white and Chinese yellow quail for transcriptome analysis. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) associated with pigmentation were identified using RNA sequencing and validated by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). The identified single nucleotide polymorphisms were studied using bioinformatics and iris color correlation analyses. A total of 485 DEGs were obtained, with 223 upregulated and 262 downregulated. Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway enrichment analyses were performed. Thirty-two genes were annotated using the GO database. Three important pigment synthesis pathways (Notch signaling, melanogenesis, and tyrosine metabolism) were identified in quail iris tissue (P < 0.05). The expression levels of solute carrier family 45 member 2 (SLC45A2), tyrosinase-related protein 1, vitamin D receptor, opsin 5, and docking protein 5 were significantly different between Beijing white and Chinese yellow quail, as verified by RT-qPCR. The c.1061C>T mutation in SLC45A2, which caused a single amino acid change at position 354 (threonine to methionine), was significantly associated with iris color in Beijing white and Chinese yellow quail, and might be the main reason for the different iris colors between these two quail species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linke Huo
- College of Animal Science, Henan University of Science and
Technology, Luoyang, 471003 He’nan, P.R. China
| | - Xiaohui Zhang
- College of Animal Science, Henan University of Science and
Technology, Luoyang, 471003 He’nan, P.R. China
- Luoyang Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding,
Luoyang 471003, P.R. China
| | - Youzhi Pang
- College of Animal Science, Henan University of Science and
Technology, Luoyang, 471003 He’nan, P.R. China
- Luoyang Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding,
Luoyang 471003, P.R. China
| | - Yanxia Qi
- College of Animal Science, Henan University of Science and
Technology, Luoyang, 471003 He’nan, P.R. China
- Luoyang Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding,
Luoyang 471003, P.R. China
| | - Shiwei Ren
- College of Animal Science, Henan University of Science and
Technology, Luoyang, 471003 He’nan, P.R. China
| | - Fanghu Wu
- College of Animal Science, Henan University of Science and
Technology, Luoyang, 471003 He’nan, P.R. China
| | - Yuanyuan Shang
- College of Animal Science, Henan University of Science and
Technology, Luoyang, 471003 He’nan, P.R. China
| | - Jinquan Xi
- College of Animal Science, Henan University of Science and
Technology, Luoyang, 471003 He’nan, P.R. China
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4
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Head ST, Dezem F, Todor A, Yang J, Plummer J, Gayther S, Kar S, Schildkraut J, Epstein MP. Cis- and trans-eQTL TWAS of breast and ovarian cancer identify more than 100 risk associated genes in the BCAC and OCAC consortia. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.11.09.566218. [PMID: 38014246 PMCID: PMC10680675 DOI: 10.1101/2023.11.09.566218] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2023]
Abstract
Transcriptome-wide association studies (TWAS) have investigated the role of genetically regulated transcriptional activity in the etiologies of breast and ovarian cancer. However, methods performed to date have only considered regulatory effects of risk associated SNPs thought to act in cis on a nearby target gene. With growing evidence for distal (trans) regulatory effects of variants on gene expression, we performed TWAS of breast and ovarian cancer using a Bayesian genome-wide TWAS method (BGW-TWAS) that considers effects of both cis- and trans-expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs). We applied BGW-TWAS to whole genome and RNA sequencing data in breast and ovarian tissues from the Genotype-Tissue Expression project to train expression imputation models. We applied these models to large-scale GWAS summary statistic data from the Breast Cancer and Ovarian Cancer Association Consortia to identify genes associated with risk of overall breast cancer, non-mucinous epithelial ovarian cancer, and 10 cancer subtypes. We identified 101 genes significantly associated with risk with breast cancer phenotypes and 8 with ovarian phenotypes. These loci include established risk genes and several novel candidate risk loci, such as ACAP3, whose associations are predominantly driven by trans-eQTLs. We replicated several associations using summary statistics from an independent GWAS of these cancer phenotypes. We further used genotype and expression data in normal and tumor breast tissue from the Cancer Genome Atlas to examine the performance of our trained expression imputation models. This work represents a first look into the role of trans-eQTLs in the complex molecular mechanisms underlying these diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- S. Taylor Head
- Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Felipe Dezem
- Department of Developmental Neurobiology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Andrei Todor
- Department of Human Genetics, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Jingjing Yang
- Department of Human Genetics, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Jasmine Plummer
- Department of Developmental Neurobiology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Simon Gayther
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Cedars Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Siddhartha Kar
- Early Cancer Institute, Department of Oncology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0XZ, UK
| | - Joellen Schildkraut
- Department of Epidemiology, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Michael P. Epstein
- Department of Human Genetics, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
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5
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Heryanto YD, Imoto S. The transcriptome signature analysis of the epithelial-mesenchymal transition and immune cell infiltration in colon adenocarcinoma. Sci Rep 2023; 13:18383. [PMID: 37884639 PMCID: PMC10603081 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-45792-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2023] [Accepted: 10/24/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) process is tightly connected to tumors' immune microenvironment. In colon adenocarcinoma (COAD), both the EMT and immune cell infiltration contribute to tumor progression; however, several questions regarding the mechanisms governing the interaction between EMT and the immune response remain unanswered. Our study aims to investigate the cross-talk between these two processes in cases of COAD and identify the key regulators involved. We utilized the EMT and immune signatures of samples from the COAD-TCGA database to identify three subtypes of COAD: high mesenchymal, medium mesenchymal, and low mesenchymal. We observed that EMT was associated with increased tumor immune response and infiltration mediated by pro-inflammatory cytokines. However, EMT was also linked to immunosuppressive activity that involved regulatory T cells, dendritic cells, and the upregulated expression of multiple immune checkpoints, such as PD-1, PDL-1, CTLA-4, and others. Finally, we employed the multivariate random forest feature importance method to identify key genes, such as DOK2 and MSRB3, that may play crucial roles in both EMT and the intratumoral immune response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yusri Dwi Heryanto
- Division of Health Medical Intelligence, Human Genome Center, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, 4-6-1 Shirokanedai, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 108-8639, Japan.
| | - Seiya Imoto
- Division of Health Medical Intelligence, Human Genome Center, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, 4-6-1 Shirokanedai, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 108-8639, Japan
- Laboratory of Sequence Analysis, Human Genome Center, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, 4-6-1 Shirokanedai, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 108-8639, Japan
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6
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He X, Tian M, Wang W, Feng Y, Li Z, Wang J, Song Y, Zhang J, Liu D. Identification of Candidate Genes for Min Pig Villi Hair Traits by Genome-Wide Association of Copy Number Variation. Vet Sci 2023; 10:vetsci10050307. [PMID: 37235390 DOI: 10.3390/vetsci10050307] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2023] [Revised: 04/21/2023] [Accepted: 04/21/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
The Min pig is a famous native pig breed in northeast China, which has the special genetic character of villi hair growth in cold seasons. At present, little research has focused on the genetic mechanism of villi hair growth in Min pigs. Copy number variations (CNVs) are a type of variant that may influence many traits. In this study, we first investigated the phenotype of Large White × Min pigs' F2 pig villi hair in detail and then performed a CNV-based genome-wide association study (GWAS) between CNVs and pig villi hair appearance. Finally, a total number of 15 significant CNVRs were found to be associated with Min pig villi hair. The most significant CNVR was located on chromosome 1. Nearest gene annotation analysis indicated that the pig villi hair traits may be associated with the biological process of the G-protein-coupled receptor signaling pathway. QTL overlapping analysis found that among the CNVRs, 14 CNVRs could be co-located with known QTLs. Some genes such as MCHR2, LTBP2, and GFRA2 may be candidate genes for pig villi traits and are worth further study. Our study may provide a basic reference for the selection and breeding of cold-resistant pigs and outdoor breeding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinmiao He
- Institute of Animal Husbandry, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China
| | - Ming Tian
- Institute of Animal Husbandry, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China
| | - Wentao Wang
- Institute of Animal Husbandry, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China
| | - Yanzhong Feng
- Institute of Animal Husbandry, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China
| | - Zhongqiu Li
- Institute of Animal Husbandry, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China
| | - Jiahui Wang
- Branch of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary of Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Qiqihar 161005, China
| | - Yan Song
- Branch of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary of Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Qiqihar 161005, China
| | - Jinfeng Zhang
- Harbin Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150029, China
| | - Di Liu
- Institute of Animal Husbandry, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China
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7
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Chen Y, Li R, Sun J, Li C, Xiao H, Chen S. Genome-Wide Population Structure and Selection Signatures of Yunling Goat Based on RAD-seq. Animals (Basel) 2022; 12:ani12182401. [PMID: 36139261 PMCID: PMC9495202 DOI: 10.3390/ani12182401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2022] [Revised: 09/07/2022] [Accepted: 09/10/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Goats are important domestic animals that provide meat, milk, fur, and other products for humans. The demand for these products has increased in recent years. Disease resistance among goat breeds is different, but the genetic basis of the differences in resistance to diseases is still unclear and needs to be further studied. In this study, many genes and pathways related to immunity and diseases were identified to be under positive selection between Yunling and Nubian goats using RAD-seq technology. This study on the selection signatures of Yunling goats provides the scientific basis and technical support for the breeding of domestic goats for disease resistance, which has important social and economic significance. Abstract Animal diseases impose a huge burden on the countries where diseases are endemic. Conventional control strategies of vaccines and veterinary drugs are to control diseases from a pharmaceutical perspective. Another alternative approach is using pre-existing genetic disease resistance or tolerance. We know that the Yunling goat is an excellent local breed from Yunnan, southwestern China, which has characteristics of strong disease resistance and remarkable adaptability. However, genetic information about the selection signatures of Yunling goats is limited. We reasoned that the genes underlying the observed difference in disease resistance might be identified by investigating selection signatures between two different goat breeds. Herein, we selected the Nubian goat as the reference group to perform the population structure and selection signature analysis by using RAD-seq technology. The results showed that two goat breeds were divided into two clusters, but there also existed gene flow. We used Fst (F-statistics) and π (pi/θπ) methods to carry out selection signature analysis. Eight selected regions and 91 candidate genes were identified, in which some genes such as DOK2, TIMM17A, MAVS, and DOCK8 related to disease and immunity and some genes such as SPEFI, CDC25B, and MIR103 were associated with reproduction. Four GO (Gene Ontology) terms (GO:0010591, GO:001601, GO:0038023, and GO:0017166) were associated with cell migration, signal transduction, and immune responses. The KEGG (Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes) signaling pathways were mainly associated with immune responses, inflammatory responses, and stress reactions. This study preliminarily revealed the genetic basis of strong disease resistance and adaptability of Yunling goats. It provides a theoretical basis for the subsequent genetic breeding of disease resistance of goats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuming Chen
- School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650500, China; (Y.C.); (R.L.); (C.L.); (H.X.)
- School of Life Sciences, Yunnan University, Kunming 650500, China;
| | - Rong Li
- School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650500, China; (Y.C.); (R.L.); (C.L.); (H.X.)
- College of Life Science, Yunnan Normal University, Kunming 650500, China
| | - Jianshu Sun
- School of Life Sciences, Yunnan University, Kunming 650500, China;
| | - Chunqing Li
- School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650500, China; (Y.C.); (R.L.); (C.L.); (H.X.)
| | - Heng Xiao
- School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650500, China; (Y.C.); (R.L.); (C.L.); (H.X.)
| | - Shanyuan Chen
- School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650500, China; (Y.C.); (R.L.); (C.L.); (H.X.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +86-18687122260
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8
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Wang L, Yang L, Yang S, Jia Z, Cai J, Rong L, Wu X, Fan L, Gong Y, Li S. Identification of genes associated with feather color in Liancheng white duck using F ST analysis. Anim Genet 2022; 53:518-521. [PMID: 35670225 DOI: 10.1111/age.13201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2022] [Revised: 03/15/2022] [Accepted: 04/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Liancheng white duck has two phenotypic traits: white feather and black beak-black foot, but the genes controlling these phenotypic traits are unknown. The objective of this study is to identify various candidate genes related to the plumage of Liancheng white duck. This study used F2 population construction generated between white Kaiya duck and Liancheng white duck and FST analysis between the dominant and recessive loci associated with the Liancheng white duck white feather in order to identify specific gene regions. As per the feather color statistics of the F2 population, it is estimated that there are about three or four genes controlling the white feather of Liancheng white ducks, and the FST results showed that four significant signals were found on chromosomes 4, 12, 13, and 21. Further annotation of these regions led to the identification of five genes involved in the melanin pathway, namely, KIT, CLOCK, MITF, CEBPA, and DOK5. Among them, CEBPA and DOK5 might be affecting the white feather traits of Liancheng white duck by regulating the melanin production and its transfer to the feather. The results provide insightful understanding into the genetic mechanisms of white feather in Liancheng white duck.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Wang
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Liubin Yang
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Sendong Yang
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Zijia Jia
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Jinping Cai
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Li Rong
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Xueying Wu
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Lingzhi Fan
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Yanchang Gong
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - ShiJun Li
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
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