Four independent mutations in the feline fibroblast growth factor 5 gene determine the long-haired phenotype in domestic cats.
To determine the genetic regulation of "hair length" in the domestic cat, a whole-genome scan was performed in a multigenerational pedigree in which the "long-haired" phenotype was segregating. The 2 markers that demonstrated the greatest linkage to the long-haired trait (log of the odds > or = 6) flanked an estimated 10-Mb region on cat chromosome B1 containing the Fibroblast Growth Factor 5 (FGF5) gene, a candidate gene implicated in regulating hair follicle growth cycle in other species. Sequence analyses of FGF5 in 26 cat breeds and 2 pedigrees of nonbreed cats revealed 4 separate mutations predicted to disrupt the biological activity of the FGF5 protein. Pedigree analyses demonstrated that different combinations of paired mutant FGF5 alleles segregated with the long-haired phenotype in an autosomal recessive manner. Association analyses of more than 380 genotyped breed and nonbreed cats were consistent with mutations in the FGF5 gene causing the long-haired phenotype in an autosomal recessive manner. In combination, these genomic approaches demonstrated that FGF5 is the major genetic determinant of hair length in the domestic cat.
Kehler
James S
JS
The Laboratory of Genomic Diversity, National Cancer Institute-Frederick, Frederick, MD 21702, USA. jkehler@ncifcrf.gov
David
Victor A
VA
Schäffer
Alejandro A
AA
Bajema
Kristina
K
Eizirik
Eduardo
E
Ryugo
David K
DK
Hannah
Steven S
SS
O'Brien
Stephen J
SJ
Menotti-Raymond
Marilyn
M
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D002415:Cats / Q000235:genetics*; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D005260:Female; D051521:Fibroblast Growth Factor 5 / Q000235:genetics*; D005819:Genetic Markers; D016678:Genome; D006197:Hair / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation; D010375:Pedigree; D010641:Phenotype; D013045:Species Specificity
D005819:Genetic Markers; D051521:Fibroblast Growth Factor 5