title: Cloning and expression of Tsaiya duck liver fatty acid binding protein.
abstract: Liver basic fatty acid (FA)-binding protein (Lb-FABP) cDNA was cloned from the livers of laying Tsaiya ducks and used to generate probes for quantification of the Lb-FABP mRNA in Tsaiya ducks. The full-length Lb-FABP cDNA of the Tsaiya duck was highly homologous with that of the mallard (99%), chicken (88%), and iguana (73%). The amino acid sequence was also highly homologous to Lb-FABP found in birds and reptiles, indicating a similar function of the Tsaiya duck Lb-FABP to those species. The calculated molecular weight for the cloned duck Lb-FABP was 14,043g/mol. The Lb-FABP was highly expressed in the liver of laying Tsaiya ducks and not detectable in heart, ovary, intestine, or adipose tissues. The expression of Tsaiya duck Lb-FABP in the skeletal muscle was also detected, and the sequence was confirmed. The greater expression of the hepatic Lb-FABP in the egg-laying Tsaiya ducks than the prelaying ducks paralleled the higher FA use by the laying ducks. These results suggest that hepatic Lb-FABP may be needed for egg production when FA metabolism is high for the ducks. Feeding laying Tsaiya ducks with diets enriched with 2% docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) oil for 2 wk significantly increased hepatic DHA content compared with in ducks fed a 2% butter basal diet. There was no effect of dietary DHA enrichment on the expression of Lb-FABP in the liver of Tsaiya ducks. The results suggest that even though the Lb-FABP may be involved in hepatic FA metabolism, the effect of individual FA on liver Lb-FABP in laying Tsaiya ducks needs to be further studied.
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Science, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Y H
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Ko
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.forename: T F
authors.initials: TF
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: S T
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: Ding
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000821:Animal Feed; D000824:Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004032:Diet; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids / Q000378:metabolism; D004372:Ducks / Q000378:metabolism*; D050556:Fatty Acid-Binding Proteins; D005260:Female; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010058:Oviposition; D012689:Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; D013045:Species Specificity
chemical_list: D002352:Carrier Proteins; D050556:Fatty Acid-Binding Proteins; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids