The sheep genome illuminates biology of the rumen and lipid metabolism.

TitleThe sheep genome illuminates biology of the rumen and lipid metabolism.
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2014
AuthorsJiang, Y, Xie, M, Chen, W, Talbot, R, Maddox, JF, Faraut, T, Wu, C, Muzny, DM, Li, Y, Zhang, W, Stanton, J-A, Brauning, R, Barris, WC, Hourlier, T, Aken, BL, Searle, SMJ, Adelson, DL, Bian, C, Cam, GR, Chen, Y, Cheng, S, DeSilva, U, Dixen, K, Dong, Y, Fan, G, Franklin, IR, Fu, S, Fuentes-Utrilla, P, Guan, R, Highland, MA, Holder, ME, Huang, G, Ingham, AB, Jhangiani, SN, Kalra, D, Kovar, CL, Lee, SL, Liu, W, Liu, X, Lu, C, Lv, T, Mathew, T, McWilliam, S, Menzies, M, Pan, S, Robelin, D, Servin, B, Townley, D, Wang, W, Wei, B, White, SN, Yang, X, Ye, C, Yue, Y, Zeng, P, Zhou, Q, Hansen, JB, Kristiansen, K, Gibbs, RA, Flicek, P, Warkup, CC, Jones, HE, V Oddy, H, Nicholas, FW, McEwan, JC, Kijas, JW, Wang, J, Worley, KC, Archibald, AL, Cockett, N, Xu, X, Wang, W, Dalrymple, BP
JournalScience
Volume344
Issue6188
Pagination1168-73
Date Published2014 Jun 6
ISSN1095-9203
KeywordsAmino Acid Sequence, Animals, Fatty Acids, Volatile, Gene Expression Regulation, Genome, Keratins, Hair-Specific, Lipid Metabolism, Molecular Sequence Data, Phylogeny, Rumen, Sheep, Domestic, Transcriptome, Wool
Abstract

Sheep (Ovis aries) are a major source of meat, milk, and fiber in the form of wool and represent a distinct class of animals that have a specialized digestive organ, the rumen, that carries out the initial digestion of plant material. We have developed and analyzed a high-quality reference sheep genome and transcriptomes from 40 different tissues. We identified highly expressed genes encoding keratin cross-linking proteins associated with rumen evolution. We also identified genes involved in lipid metabolism that had been amplified and/or had altered tissue expression patterns. This may be in response to changes in the barrier lipids of the skin, an interaction between lipid metabolism and wool synthesis, and an increased role of volatile fatty acids in ruminants compared with nonruminant animals.

DOI10.1126/science.1252806
Alternate JournalScience
PubMed ID24904168
PubMed Central IDPMC4157056
Grant List095908 / / Wellcome Trust / United Kingdom
098051 / / Wellcome Trust / United Kingdom
BB/1025360/1 / / Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council / United Kingdom
BB/I025328/1 / / Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council / United Kingdom
BB/I025360/1 / / Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council / United Kingdom
BB/I025360/2 / / Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council / United Kingdom
BB/I025506/1 / / Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council / United Kingdom
BBS/E/D/20211550 / / Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council / United Kingdom
BBS/E/D/20211552 / / Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council / United Kingdom
U54 HG003273 / HG / NHGRI NIH HHS / United States
WT095908 / / Wellcome Trust / United Kingdom
WT098051 / / Wellcome Trust / United Kingdom
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