Identification of a potential functional single nucleotide polymorphism for fatness and growth traits in the 3′-untranslated region of the PCSK1 gene in chickens1

Abstract

Prohormone convertase 1/3 is a serine endoprotease belonging to the subtilisin-like proprotein convertase family that is encoded by the () gene, and its major function is the processing and bioactivation of the proproteins of many kinds of neuroendocrine hormones, including insulin, cholecystokinin, and adrenocorticotropic hormone. The results of our previous genomewide association study indicated that the gene might be an important candidate gene for fatness traits in chickens. The objectives of this study were to investigate the tissue expression profiles of gene and to identify functional variants associated with fatness and growth traits in the chicken. The results indicated that mRNA was widely expressed in various tissues, especially neuroendocrine and intestinal tissues. Of these 2 tissue types, mRNA expression in lean males was significantly higher than in fat males. A SNP in the 3' untranslated region of (c.*900G > A) was identified. Association analysis in the Arbor Acres commercial broiler population and Northeast Agricultural University broiler lines divergently selected for abdominal fat content (NEAUHLF) population showed that the SNP c.*900G > A was associated with abdominal fat weight, abdominal fat percentage, BW, metatarsus length, and metatarsal circumference. In the 5th to 19th generation (G to G) of NEAUHLF, the allele frequency of c.*900G > A changed along with selection for abdominal fat content. At G, allele G of c.*900G > A was predominate in the lean line, whereas allele A was predominate in the fat line. Functional analysis demonstrated that allele A of c.*900G > A reduced mRNA stability and consequently downregulated gene expression. These results suggested that c.*900G > A was a functional SNP for fatness and growth traits in the chicken. The results of this study provide basic molecular information for the role of gene in avian growth and development, especially obesity.

Nuclear Respiratory Factor 1 Negatively Regulates the P1 Promoter of the Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor-γ Gene and Inhibits Chicken Adipogenesis

“…The abdominal fat tissue samples used in this study were from a previous study by our group (Zhang et al, 2017). These samples were obtained from generation 19 of Northeast Agricultural University broiler lines divergently selected for abdominal fat content (NEAUHLF) and composed of a total of 70 abdominal fat tissues of male birds (five birds per line and per time point) from 1 to 7 weeks of age.…”

Microevolutionary Dynamics of Chicken Genomes under Divergent Selection for Adiposity

“…Interestingly, the genes involved in adipose tissue and neural system development were positively selected, such as ligand dependent nuclear receptor corepressor like (LCORL), proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 1 (PCSK1), and mannose binding lectin 2 (MBL2) (Figures 2A and 2B). Previously, the PCSK1 gene was identified for its preferential selection in the breeding of broiler chickens (Zhang et al, 2012) and associations with abdominal fat weight and percentage in two populations of broiler chickens (Zhang et al, 2017). PCSK1 was highly expressed in neuroendocrine and intestinal tissues in broiler chickens (Zhang et al, 2017) and thus might contribute to the regulation of fat deposition via the neural and digestive systems.…”

Based serum metabolomics analysis reveals simultaneous interconnecting changes during chicken embryonic development

“…Like humans, but unlike rodents or pigs, the liver is the primary site of fatty acid synthesis in chickens (Leveille, Romsos, Yeh, & O’Hea, ). It had reported that most metabolic genes of chickens share similarities with human, and a number of the quantitative trait loci that have been linked to fatness in chickens contain genes implicated in human susceptibility to obesity (Zhang, Cheng, et al., ). The chicken mimics the early stage of type 2 diabetes in humans, exhibiting both hyperglycaemia and resistance to exogenous insulin (Bo, Ernest, Gooding, Das, & Saxton, ), making it an attractive model for the study of obesity in humans.…”