Comparative genomic identification and validation of β-defensin genes in the Ovis aries genome
| Autor: | Emma K. Finlay, Thomas J. Hall, Kieran G. Meade, Sean Fair, C. McQuillan, Cliona O'Farrelly |
|---|---|
| Přispěvatelé: | Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, 11/S/104 |
| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Rok vydání: | 2017 |
| Předmět: |
0301 basic medicine
Male sheep beta-Defensins lcsh:QH426-470 Gene prediction lcsh:Biotechnology Gene Expression Biology Genome ram 03 medical and health sciences 0302 clinical medicine lcsh:TP248.13-248.65 Testis Genetics Animals Amino Acid Sequence Gene Phylogeny Sheep Domestic Chromosome 13 Comparative genomics fertility Epididymis 030219 obstetrics & reproductive medicine Sheep Chromosome Mapping Sequence Analysis DNA Bovine genome Ram lcsh:Genetics 030104 developmental biology Fertility Multigene Family Chromosome 20 epididymis Biotechnology Reference genome Research Article |
| Zdroj: | BMC Genomics, Vol 18, Iss 1, Pp 1-11 (2017) BMC Genomics |
| ISSN: | 1471-2164 |
| Popis: | peer-reviewed Background β-defensins are small, cationic, antimicrobial peptides found in species across the plant and animal kingdoms. In addition to microbiocidal activity, roles in immunity as well as reproduction have more recently been documented. β-defensin genes in Ovis aries (domestic sheep) have been poorly annotated, having been identified only by automatic gene prediction algorithms. The objective of this study was to use a comparative genomics approach to identify and characterise the β-defensin gene repertoire in sheep using the bovine genome as the primary reference. Results All 57 currently predicted bovine β-defensin genes were used to find orthologous sequences in the most recent version of the sheep genome (OAR v4.0). Forty three genes were found to have close genomic matches (>70% similarity) between sheep and cattle. The orthologous genes were located in four clusters across the genome, with 4 genes on chromosome 2, 19 genes on chromosome 13, 5 genes on chromosome 20 and 15 genes on chromosome 26. Conserved gene order for the β-defensin genes was apparent in the two smaller clusters, although gene order was reversed on chromosome 2, suggesting an inversion between sheep and cattle. Complete conservation of gene order was also observed for chromosome 13 β-defensin orthologs. More structural differences were apparent between chromosome 26 genes and the orthologous region in the bovine reference genome, which is known to be copy-number variable. In this cluster, the Defensin-beta 1 (DEFB1) gene matched to eleven Bovine Neutrophil beta-Defensin (BNBD) genes on chromosome 27 with almost uniform similarity, as well as to tracheal, enteric and lingual anti-microbial peptides (TAP, EAP and LAP), suggesting that annotation of the bovine reference sequence is still incomplete. qPCR was used to profile the expression of 34 β-defensin genes, representing each of the four clusters, in the ram reproductive tract. Distinct site-specific and differential expression profiles were detected across the reproductive tract of mature rams with preferential β-defensin gene expression in the epididymis, recapitulating observations for orthologous genes in other species. Conclusions This is the first comprehensive analysis of β-defensin genes encoded by the ovine reference sequence, and the first report of an expanded repertoire of β-defensin genes in this species. The preferential expression of these genes in the epididymis suggests a role in fertility, possibly providing immunoprotection for sperm within the female reproductive tract. Research was funded by a Department of Agriculture Stimulus grant (11/S/104) |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
|