Depigmentation of skin and hair color in the somatic cell cloned pig.
Previously, we have successfully produced nine cloned piglets using Duroc donor cells. Among these clones, one showed distinct depigmentation of the skin and hair color during puberty. In this study, we selected a clone with depigmentation to investigate the etiology of the anomaly in somatic cell nuclear transfer. We hypothesized that genes related to Waardenburg syndrome (Mitf, Pax-3, Sox-10, Slug, and Kit) are closely associated with the depigmentation of pig, which was derived from somatic cell nuclear transfer (scNT). Total RNA was extracted from the ear tissue of affected and unaffected scNT-derived pigs, and the transcripts encoding Mitf, Pax-3, Sox-10, and Slug, together with the Kit gene, were amplified by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, sequenced, and analyzed. The cDNA sequences from the scNT pig that showed progressive depigmentation did not reveal a mutation in these genes. Although we did not find any mutations in these genes, expression of the genes implicated in Waardenburg syndrome was severely down-regulated in the affected scNT pig when compared with unaffected scNT pigs. This down-regulation of gene expression may result in a previously undescribed phenotype that shows melanocyte instability, leading to progressive loss of pigmentation.
Hwang
Kyu-Chan
KC
Department of Animal Biotechnology, KonKuk University, Seoul, Korea.
Cho
Seong-Keun
SK
Lee
Seong-Hoon
SH
Park
Jong-Yi
JY
Kwon
Deug-Nam
DN
Choi
Yun-Jung
YJ
Park
Chankyu
C
Kim
Jae-Hwan
JH
Park
Keun-Kyu
KK
Hwang
Seongsoo
S
Park
Soo-Bong
SB
Kim
Jin-Hoi
JH
D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D019976:Cloning, Organism / Q000379:methods*; D019175:DNA Methylation / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D018628:Gene Dosage / Q000502:physiology; D005796:Genes / Q000502:physiology; D006200:Hair Color / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D017496:Hypopigmentation / Q000235:genetics / Q000662:veterinary*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D053652:Nuclear Transfer Techniques; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D011247:Pregnancy; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D019009:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-kit / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D012880:Skin Pigmentation / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D013552:Swine / Q000196:embryology / Q000235:genetics; D014849:Waardenburg Syndrome / Q000235:genetics
D019009:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-kit