College of Animal Science and Technology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China.
Joint International Research Laboratory of Agriculture & Agri-Product Safety, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China.
Genes (Basel). 2020 May 20;11(5):575. doi: 10.3390/genes11050575.
The naturally colorful fur of the Rex rabbit is becoming increasingly popular in the modern textile market. Our previous study found that POU class 2 homeobox 1 gene () potentially affects the expression of genes involved in fur color formation in the Rex rabbit, but the function and regulation of has not been reported. In this study, the expression patterns of in Rex rabbits of various colors, as well as in different organs, were analyzed by RT-qPCR. Interference and overexpression of were used to identify the potential effects of on other genes related to fur color formation. The results show that the levels of expression were significantly higher in the dorsal skin of the brown and protein yellow Rex rabbits, compared with that of the black one. mRNAs were widespread in the tissues examined in this study and showed the highest level in the lungs. By transfecting rabbit melanocytes with an -overexpression plasmid, we found that the POU2F1 protein was located at the nucleus, and the protein showed the classic characteristics of a transcription factor. In addition, abnormal expression of significantly affected the expression of pigmentation-related genes, including , , , , and , revealing the regulatory roles of on pigmentation. The results provide the basis for further exploration of the role of in fur color formation of the Rex rabbit.
獭兔天然多彩的被毛在现代纺织市场中越来越受欢迎。我们之前的研究发现，POU 类 2 型同源框 1 基因（）可能影响獭兔被毛颜色形成相关基因的表达，但尚未报道的功能和调节作用。在这项研究中，通过 RT-qPCR 分析了不同颜色獭兔以及不同器官中基因的表达模式。干扰和过表达，以鉴定对其他与毛色形成相关基因的潜在影响。结果表明，棕色和蛋白黄色獭兔背部皮肤中的表达水平明显高于黑色獭兔。在本研究检测的组织中，mRNA 广泛存在，在肺部表达水平最高。通过将过表达质粒转染兔黑素细胞，我们发现 POU2F1 蛋白位于细胞核内，并且该蛋白表现出转录因子的典型特征。此外，的异常表达显著影响了与色素沉着相关的基因的表达，包括、、、、和，揭示了对色素沉着的调节作用。该结果为进一步探索在獭兔被毛颜色形成中的作用提供了依据。
