title: Detection of SNPs in the cathepsin D gene and their association with yolk traits in chickens.
abstract: CTSD (Cathepsin D) is a key enzyme in yolk formation, and it primarily affects egg yolk weight and egg weight. However, recent research has mostly focused on the genomic structure of the CTSD gene and the enzyme's role in pathology, and less is known about the enzyme's functions in chickens. In this paper, the correlations between CTSD polymorphisms and egg quality traits were analyzed in local Shandong chicken breeds. CTSD polymorphisms were investigated by PCR-SSCP (polymerase chain reaction single strand conformation polymorphism) and sequencing analysis. Two variants were found to be associated with egg quality traits. One variant (2614T>C), located in exon 3, was novel. Another variant (5274G>T), located in intron 4, was previously referred to as rs16469410. Overall, our results indicated that CTSD would be a useful candidate gene in selection programs for improving yolk traits.
authors: Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbiological Engineering, Shandong Polytechnic University, Ji'nan, Shandong, China.
authors: Qian
authors: Q
authors: Sheng
authors: Dingguo
authors: D
authors: Cao
authors: Yan
authors: Y
authors: Zhou
authors: Qiuxia
authors: Q
authors: Lei
authors: Haixia
authors: H
authors: Han
authors: Fuwei
authors: F
authors: Li
authors: Yan
authors: Y
authors: Lu
authors: Cunfang
authors: C
authors: Wang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D030161:Avian Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D001483:Base Sequence; D002402:Cathepsin D / Q000235:genetics*; D002645:Chickens / Q000235:genetics*; D004530:Egg Yolk / Q000502:physiology*; D063427:Food Quality; D005787:Gene Frequency; D056726:Genetic Association Studies; D006239:Haplotypes; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
chemical_list: D030161:Avian Proteins; D002402:Cathepsin D