A 67-bp variable duplication in the promoter region of the ADIPOQ is associated with milk traits in Xinjiang brown cattle.

Adiponectin, also known as ADIPOQ, is a hormone protein secreted by adipocytes. The ADIPOQ gene is expressed primarily in adipose tissue, and the encoded protein circulates in the bloodstream and has the potential to regulate both animal fat metabolism and hormone production. Our previous work uncovered a 67-bp variable duplication in the promoter region of ADIPOQ, which reduced the basal transcriptional activity of ADIPOQ in the 3T3_L1 cell and also inhibits the ADIPOQ mRNA expression in adipose tissue. Accordingly, the present study aimed to identify the relationship between the 67-bp structural variations in ADIPOQ promoter region and the milk traits of Xinjiang brown cattle (XJBC). The results revealed two genotypes, DD and ID, in the XJBC, and minor allelic frequency (MAF) for the 'I' allele was more than 1%. Moreover, the association analysis revealed that the 67-bp duplication in the promoter region of the ADIPOQ gene was significantly correlated with the 305 days of milk production volume, fat yield, and milk fat percentage in the XJBC (p < 0.05). These results obtained in this study suggested that the identified variable duplication could be considered as the potential genetic marker for improving milk traits of XJBC.

The evaluation of genomic homozygosity for Xinjiang inbred population by SNP panels.

Xinjiang inbred cattle is a population which has been highly inbred for 45 years. However, the breed origin of this population cannot be traced back due to the lack of original records. To demonstrate the genetic background of Xinjiang inbred cattle, we analysed the worldwide genomic information of 16 cattle breeds using principal components analysis, and Admixture method. Furthermore, the shared SNP markers of Xinjiang inbred cattle, local Kazakh cattle, Holstein cattle, and Xinjiang Brown cattle were extracted to calculate population genetic parameters and genomic inbreeding indicators in order to evaluate the magnitude of inbreeding in each population. We also evaluated the relationship between inbreeding indicators and body size in the Xinjiang inbred population. Finally, the high frequency runs of homozygosity (ROH) regions for Xinjiang inbred cattle and local Kazakh population were selected for genes and QTL annotations. These results demonstrate that the ancestry proportions of inbreeding breed are similar to those of Kazakh cattle. The genomic homozygosity of Xinjiang inbred cattle is significantly higher than other populations; the inbreeding depression is observed in body size to a certain extent because body size decreased when corresponding homozygosity increased. Totally, six basic bio-pathways and 32 QTL regions that related to bovine economical traits were annotated. Our results provide the insights into breeding strategies, future protection, and utilization plan design for this special genetic material-Xinjiang inbred cattle.

WITHDRAWN:Identification of Polymorphisms and Association of Five KAP Genes with Sheep Wool Traits.

Ahead of Print article withdrawn by publisher.

[Establishment of the detection method for two causative genes of cattle arachnomelia syndrome].

Arachnomelia syndrome (AS) is a recessive inherited disease in cattle. Although the arachnomelia phenotypes are virtually identical in Brown Swiss and Simmental cattle, the causative mutation are different, which are a 1 bp insertion c.363-364insG in the sulfite oxidase (SUOX) gene and a 2 bp deletion c.1224_1225delCA in the molybdenum cofactor syn-thesis step 1 (MOCS1) gene, respectively. In the current study, combining fluorescence PCR with capillary electrophoresis technology, an automatic fluorescence method was established, which could detect the two causative loci rapidly and cor-rectly with a single reaction. Samples from 51 Simmental bulls, 80 cows mated artificially using semen of Simmental bulls and their resulted 106 progeny, together with 55 Xinjiang Brown were collected and used for validation of the newly de-signed methods. Our results have laid a foundation for screening AS disease causing mutations in Chinese cattle.

[Candidate gene analysis of high quality merino sheep].

Partial sequences of wool fiber constituent genes KAP1.1 and KAP1.3 and the exonic sequence of the KAP6.1 gene were chosen for polymerase chain reaction-single strand conformation polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) analysis to assess their ability as candidate genes during indirect selection for fine wool traits. Results show that locus W08667 in the genes (KAP1.1, KAP1.3) which code the high sulfur protein associated-protein of keratin associated-protein family is significantly correlated with fine wool quality (P < 0.05). Among the high-glycine-tyrosine keratin associated- protein, the AA and BB genotypes of W06933 are also significantly correlated with fine wool quality (P < 0.05).