title: An integrated genomics approach to identify genetic regions associated with neonatal growth trait in mice.
abstract: Neonatal growth during the early post-partum period is closely associated with lactation performance. Neonatal growth reflects milk output and is a complex variable trait among inbred mouse strains, but few studies have compared this trait systematically across more than a few strains. In the present study, 11 inbred strains of mice were measured for a neonatal growth phenotype during the first eight days of lactation. Significant differences in neonatal growth trait were observed with QSi5 (3.71±0.05 g) and DBA/1J (2.67±0.06 g) strains defining the two extremes of the phenotype. In silico association analysis was performed for trait variability using the high density SNP information on inbred strains of mice. We found strong evidence to refine a previously identified large neonatal growth QTL on mouse chromosome 9, Neogq1. When an integrated strategy that combined fine mapping and analysis of mammary transcriptome expression profiles of lactating mice with divergent phenotypes was applied, we identified neogenin (Neo1), a gene important for mammary gland morphogenesis, as a likely quantitative trait gene (QTG) underlying the Neogq1 QTL in mice.
authors.affiliation: a Faculty of Veterinary Science, The University of Sydney , New South Wales , Australia.
authors.forename: Palaniappan
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ramanathan
authors.forename: Jerry
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: Ian C
authors.initials: IC
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.forename: Peter C
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Thomson
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Moran
authors.forename: Rosanne M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Williamson
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D002874:Chromosome Mapping / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D016678:Genome / Q000235:genetics*; D007774:Lactation / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D051379:Mice; D008809:Mice, Inbred C3H; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008811:Mice, Inbred DBA; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development*; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide / Q000235:genetics; D040641:Quantitative Trait Loci; D013045:Species Specificity; D018511:Systems Integration
chemical_list: D008565:Membrane Proteins; C091279:neogenin