Functional expression study of igf2 antisense transcript in mouse.

Insulin-like growth factor antisense gene (Igf2as) expression was investigated in different mouse tissues during development, in differentiating C2C12 cells and in a ΔDMR1-U2 knockout mouse model. The expression levels of Igf2as were high in fetal and newborn liver and muscle tissues compared to adults. The Igf2as gene was also expressed in placenta and in brain.

The Igf2as transcript is exported into cytoplasm and associated with polysomes.

Murine insulin-like growth factor 2 antisense (Igf2as) transcripts originate from the opposite strand of the same Igf2 locus as the Igf2 sense mRNA. The Igf2, insulin 2 (Ins2), and H19 genes form a cluster of imprinted genes on chromosome 7. Loss of imprinting of IGF2 in humans is associated with Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome and Silver-Russell syndrome, as well as with Wilm's tumor and colorectal cancer.

Biallelic transcription of the porcine IGF2R gene.

Here we report biallelic IGF2R gene expression in pig. We investigated SNPs in IGF2R exon 37 and in the 3'UTR and found biallelic expression in fetal brain and in livers, muscle and kidney tissues of fetal, newborn and adult pigs. PCR-RFLP and DNA sequencing results show consistently that IGF2R is expressed from both parental alleles although differential allelic expression may occur.

Relationship of porcine IGF2 imprinting status to DNA methylation at the H19 DMD and the IGF2 DMRs 1 and 2.

Background: Porcine IGF2 and the H19 genes are imprinted. The IGF2 is paternally expressed, while the H19 gene is maternally expressed. Extensive studies in mice established a boundary model indicating that the H19 differentially methylated domain (DMD) controls, upon binding with the CTCF protein, reciprocal imprinting of the IGF2 and the H19 genes.

A nonsense mutation in the optic atrophy 3 gene (OPA3) causes dilated cardiomyopathy in Red Holstein cattle.

Cardiomyopathies are severe degenerative disorders of the myocardium that lead to heart failure. During the last three decades bovine dilated cardiomyopathy (BDCMP) was observed worldwide in cattle of Holstein-Friesian origin. In the Swiss cattle population BDCMP affects Fleckvieh and Red Holstein breeds.

Quantification of global DNA methylation with infrared fluorescence in liver and muscle tissues of differentially fed boars.

Methylation of cytosine residues at CpG sites is involved in various biological processes to control gene regulation and gene expression. Global DNA methylation is changed in different tumors and in cloned animals. Global DNA methylation can be accurately quantified by dot blot analysis with infrared (IR) fluorophores.

The bovine dilated cardiomyopathy locus maps to a 1.0-Mb interval on chromosome 18.

Cardiomyopathies are myocardial diseases that lead to cardiac dysfunction, heart failure, arrhythmia, and sudden death. In human medicine, cardiomyopathies frequently warrant heart transplantation in children and adults. Bovine dilated cardiomyopathy (BDCMP) is a heart muscle disorder that has been observed during the last 30 years in cattle of Holstein-Friesian origin.

Genome-wide identification of quantitative trait loci in a cross between Hampshire and Landrace II: meat quality traits.

Background: Meat quality traits are important in pig breeding programs, but they are difficult to include in a traditional selection program. Marker assisted selection (MAS) of meat quality traits is therefore of interest in breeding programs and a Quantitative Trait Locus (QTL) analysis is the key to identifying markers that can be used in MAS. In this study, Landrace and Hampshire intercross and backcross families were used to investigate meat quality traits.

Associations between 2 paternal casein haplotypes and milk yield traits of Swiss Fleckvieh cattle.

Associations between casein haplotypes and milk yield traits of offspring from 5 Swiss Fleckvieh AI test bulls were investigated. The analysis was performed by using a daughter design, where each daughter inherited either paternal haplotype B-A1-A-A or B-A2-A-A for alleles of alpha s1-, beta-, alpha s2- and kappa-casein genes. The substitution effects of paternal CSN2 A1 versus A2 on protein yield deviations (YDs) were significant (P < 0.

IGF2 antisense transcript expression in porcine postnatal muscle is affected by a quantitative trait nucleotide in intron 3.

A paternally expressed quantitative trait locus (QTL) for muscle mass was mapped to the insulin-like growth factor II (IGF2) locus at the distal end of pig chromosome 2p. It was recently demonstrated that a G to A transition at position intron 3-nt 3072 is the quantitative trait nucleotide (QTN) underlying this QTL. In this study we report for the first time the existence of imprinted porcine IGF2 antisense transcripts (IGF2-AS) and demonstrate that their expression in postnatal muscle is also affected by the QTN.