Genomic and comparative analysis of the T cell receptor gamma locus in two species.

The genus is the only extant genus of the Equidae family, which belongs to Perissodactyla, an order of mammals characterized by an odd number of toes (odd-toes ungulates). Taking advantage of the latest release of the genome assembly, we studied, for the first time in two organisms belonging to the genus, the horse () and the donkey (), the T cell receptor gamma (TRG) locus encoding the gamma chain of the γδ T cell receptor. Forty-five Variable (TRGV) genes belonging to the seven IMGT-NC validated mammalian TRGV subgroups, 25 Joining (TRGJ) and 17 Constant (TRGC) genes organized in 17 V-J-(J)-C cassettes, in tandem on about 1100 Kb, characterize the horse TRG locus, making the horse TRG locus the one with the greatest extension and with a significantly higher number of genes than the orthologous loci of the other mammalian species.