title: Association between BMP15 Gene Polymorphism and Reproduction Traits and Its Tissues Expression Characteristics in Chicken.
abstract: BMP15 (Bone morphogenetic protein 15) is an oocyte-secreted growth factor required for ovarian follicle development and ovulation in mammals, but its effects on reproduction in chickens are unclear. In this study, the association between BMP15 polymorphisms and reproduction traits were analyzed, and its expression characteristics in different tissues were explored in LaiWu Black chickens. Three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified in four hundred LaiWu Black chickens. One SNP (NC_006091.3:g.1773T>C) located in exon 2 which was significantly associated with egg weight at first egg (EWFE) (P = 0.0389), was novel. Diplotypes based on the three SNPs were found to be significantly associated with egg weight at age of 43W (EW43) (P = 0.0058). The chickens with H3H3 diplotype had their first egg 0.57 days later than chickens with H5H5 diplotype and 1.21 days-3.96 days earlier than the other five diplotype chickens. The egg production at age of 43W (E43), egg production at age of 46W (E46) and egg production at age of 48W (E48) for chickens with H3H3 diplotype were the highest among all the chickens, and the E48 of chickens with H3H3 diplotype had 11.83 eggs higher than chickens with H1H5 diplotype. RT-qPCR results showed that the expression level of BMP15 gene in ovarian follicle was in the order of 4 mm>6 mm -8 mm> 15 mm -19 mm> 23 mm -29 mm > 33 mm -34 mm in diameter. The mRNA level in follicles of 4 mm and 6-8 mm in diameter were significantly higher than that in the other follicles (P<0.01). In the same week, the highest mRNA level was found in the ovary, and it was significantly different from that found in the liver and oviduct (P<0.01). Our results indicate that BMP15 plays a vital role in the development of ovary and follicles, especially in the development of primary follicles. H3H3 may be an potential advantageous molecular marker for improving reproduction traits in chickens.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Poultry Science, Academy of Agricultural Sciences of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.|Poultry Breeding Engineering Technology Center of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.
authors.forename: Haixia
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: Institute of Poultry Science, Academy of Agricultural Sciences of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.|Poultry Breeding Engineering Technology Center of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.
authors.forename: Qiuxia
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Lei
authors.affiliation: Institute of Poultry Science, Academy of Agricultural Sciences of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.|Poultry Breeding Engineering Technology Center of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Institute of Poultry Science, Academy of Agricultural Sciences of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.|Poultry Breeding Engineering Technology Center of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.
authors.forename: Jinbo
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: Institute of Poultry Science, Academy of Agricultural Sciences of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.|Poultry Breeding Engineering Technology Center of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Institute of Poultry Science, Academy of Agricultural Sciences of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.|Poultry Breeding Engineering Technology Center of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.
authors.forename: Fuwei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Institute of Poultry Science, Academy of Agricultural Sciences of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.|Poultry Breeding Engineering Technology Center of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.
authors.forename: Qian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Poultry Science, Academy of Agricultural Sciences of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.|Poultry Breeding Engineering Technology Center of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: Institute of Poultry Science, Academy of Agricultural Sciences of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.|Poultry Breeding Engineering Technology Center of Shandong Province, Jinan 250023, Shandong, China.
authors.forename: Dingguo
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cao
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D000818:Animals; D030161:Avian Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D055430:Bone Morphogenetic Protein 15 / Q000235:genetics*; D002645:Chickens / Q000235:genetics*; D004171:Diploidy; D004531:Eggs; D005091:Exons; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency; D006239:Haplotypes; D006080:Ovarian Follicle / Q000378:metabolism; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012098:Reproduction / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D030161:Avian Proteins; D055430:Bone Morphogenetic Protein 15; D012333:RNA, Messenger