A novel SNP of TECPR2 gene associated with heat tolerance in Chinese cattle

Abstract

Heat stress affects the animal production and causes serious economic losses to the husbandry. Tectonin beta-propeller repeat containing 2 (TECPR2) gene plays an important role in autophagy which may affect the temperature sensation in animals. A missense mutation (XM_024981840.1:c.3989 G > A p.Arg1330His) of the transcripts X4 in the bovine TECPR2 gene was identified. In this study, the c.3989 G > A variant in TECPR2 gene was genotyped in a total of 25 cattle breeds (520 individuals). Our results indicated that the frequency of A allele showed a decreasing pattern from southern cattle to northern cattle, while the frequency of G allele showed the opposite pattern, which was consistent with the climate distribution of China. Compared with the GG genotype, southern cattle carried more the AA and AG genotypes. Furthermore, the association results carried out that the frequencies of genotypes (GG, AG, AA) and the value of climate parameters (mean annual temperature (T), relative humidity (RH) and temperature humidity index (THI) were significantly correlated (p < 0.01). Hence, we speculated that the c.3989 G > A variant of TECPR2 gene was associated with the heat tolerance trait in Chinese cattle and the locus may be considered as a molecular marker for Chinese cattle breeding.

Keywords:

• Chinese cattle
• TECPR2
• heat tolerance
• SNP

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Author contributions

Chuzhao Lei and Bizhi Huang designed and supervised the project. Xiaohui Ma and Yangkai Liu performed experiments and analyzed the data. Luyang Sun, Kaixing Qu, Jianyong Liu and Jicai Zhang made figures in the paper. Xiaohui Ma drafted manuscript. Quratulain Hanif and Chuzhao Lei reviewed and edited the manuscript. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by China Agriculture Research System of MOF and MARA [CARS-37], the Program of Yunling Scholar, and the Young and Middle-aged Academic Technology Leader Backup Talent Cultivation Program in Yunnan Province, China [No. 2018HB045], Yunnan Provincial Major S&T Project [No. 2019ZG007 and 2019ZG011] and the Doctoral Startup Project of Chuxiong Normal University [No. BSQD2101].