Altered Transcript Levels of and Genes in the Muscle and Connective Tissue of Pigs with Umbilical Hernia.

Umbilical hernia (UH) and inguinal hernia (IH) are among the most common defects in pigs, affecting their welfare and resulting in economic losses. In this study, we aimed to verify the association of previously reported differences in transcript levels of the , , , and genes with the occurrence of UH and IH. We examined mRNA levels in muscle and connective tissue from 68 animals-34 affected by UH and 34 controls. In a second cohort, we examined inguinal channel samples from 46 pigs (in four groups). We determined DNA methylation levels in muscle tissue for the UH and control animals. The transcript level of changed in the UH cases, being upregulated and downregulated in muscle and connective tissue, respectively, and the gene also showed an increased muscular mRNA level. The transcript of the gene significantly decreased in old pigs with IH. We further observed an increased DNA methylation level for one CpG site within the gene in UH individuals. We conclude that these alterations in gene mRNA levels in the UH animals depend on the tissue and can sometimes be a consequence of, not a cause of, the affected phenotype.