title: Gene expression of vascular endothelial growth factor A and hypoxic adaptation in Tibetan pig.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA) can induce endothelial cell proliferation, promote cell migration, and inhibit apoptosis. These processes play key roles in physiological blood vessel formation and pathological angiogenesis.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this study, we examined VEGFA gene expression in the heart, liver, and kidney of Tibetan pigs (TP), Yorkshire pigs that migrated to high altitudes (YH), and Yorkshire pigs that lived at low altitudes (YL). We used PCR and Sanger sequencing to screen for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 5'-flanking DNA and exons of the VEGFA gene. Quantitative real-time PCR and western blots were used to measure expression levels and PCR products were sequenced.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Results showed that the VEGFA mRNA and protein expression in heart, liver and kidney of TP was higher than that in YH and YL. In addition, the mRNA sequence of the pig VEGFA gene was conserved among pig breeds, and only five SNPs were found in the 5'-flanking region of the VEGFA gene, the allele frequency distributions of the 5 SNPs were not significantly different between the TP, Yorkshire (YL), and Diannan small-ear (DN) pig populations.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In conclusion, the Tibetan pig showed high levels of VEGFA gene expression in several hypoxic tissues, which suggests that the VEGFA gene may play a major functional role in hypoxic adaptation.
authors.affiliation: National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193 People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: College of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, Tibet University, Linzhi, 860000 People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yangzong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Qiangba
authors.affiliation: National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193 People's Republic of China ; College of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, Tibet University, Linzhi, 860000 People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Peng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Shang
authors.affiliation: School of life science & technology, Nanyang normal University, Nanyang, 473061 Henan Province People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yunfeng
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: Hebei Provincial Husbandry and Veterinary Research Institute, Baoding, Hebei 071001 People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yuzeng
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193 People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Zhixiu
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193 People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
keywords: Gene expression; Hypoxic adaptation; Tibetan pig; VEGFA gene