Polymorphisms of 5′-UTR and 3′-UTR of PLIN2 Gene and Their Associations with Growth Traits in Xuanhe Pig

Purpose The aim of the present study was to reveal the effect of PLIN2 gene polymorphisms on the growth traits of Xuanhe pigs.

Method A sample of 357 Xuanhe pigs were used to screen the polymorphisms of 5′-untranslated region (UTR) and 3′-UTR of PLIN2 gene by PCR products directed sequencing, and the differences of growth traits of different genotypes at each single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) locus were analyzed.

Result Three SNPs were identified at 5′-UTR and 3′-UTR of PLIN2 gene, which two (G158A, T491G) at the 5′-UTR and one (G5689A) at the 3′-UTR. For the the three SNPs, the genotype frequencies of GG, TT and GG genotypes were the highest, and the alleles G, T and G were dominant alleles, respectively; the loci T491G and G5689A were medium polymorphic and abundant in genetic diversity, and were in equilibrium (P>0.05), except the locus G158A. The genotype GG of G158A, TT of T491G and GG of G5689A were significantly higher than the other genotypes of the same locus on the body weight (BW) at 6 months, average daily gain (ADG) of 4 to 6 months and ADG of 70 days to 6 months (P<0.01 orP<0.05). In addition, there were obvious synergistic effects on the growth traits for different haplotype combinations of the three SNP loci, and the GTG/GTG was the highest among the all combinations on the BW at 6 months, ADG of 4 to 6 months and ADG of 70 days to 6 months (P<0.01 orP<0.05).

Conclusion The present results further confirmed the effectiveness of the breeding of the new breed Xuanhe pig from the polymorphisms of PLIN2 gene, and preliminarily confirmed the significant association of PLIN2 gene with growth traits in Xuanhe pigs.