Identification of a candidate genetic variant for the Himalayan color pattern in dogs.

Acromelanism is a temperature-dependent hypopigmentation pattern commonly manifested as the Himalayan coat color found in rabbits, rats, mice, minks, and gerbils, wherein the extreme "points" are dark and the torso is pale. It is known as the Siamese pattern in cats. Himalayan color is genetically determined by the allelic variant c of the locus C, later identified as the tyrosinase gene TYR.