The inheritance of non-response to noradrenaline in newborn Scottish Blackface lambs

Abstract

SummaryThe normal response to injection of noradrenaline (NA) in newborn lambs is an increase in metabolic rate and rectal temperature, due to the stimulation of non-shivering thermogenesis. In a previous study 6 out of 7 lambs born to a sire previously selected for low resistance to cold failed to show this characteristic response and were termed non-responders. The sire, 2 of his male offspring and 6 sires selected randomly from the flock were mated to several ewes and the response to NA stimulation recorded in 116 newborn lambs. Control sires produced only normal responder lambs whereas the remaining sires all produced both responder and non-responder lambs. The proportion of non-responders was not significantly different from 0·50, which is consistent with a dominant major gene. Analysis of the quantitative traits, peak metabolic rate and peak rectal temperature following NA injection confirms that a major gene is segregating in the study population, but is unable to distinguish between dominant and recessive modes of inheritance. Absence of non-responders in other studies suggests that dominance is more likely. This new genetic resource could aid our understanding of brown adipose tissue metabolism and the effect of catecholamines on metabolic pathways.