Application of PCR Technique to Detect Polymorphism of the KRTAP1.1 Gene in Three Sheep Breeds - A Review

Abstract

The quality of wool and pelt products depends on the quality of the wool and pelt grown on farm. Genes coding for the proteins involved in the structural components of wool fibre; keratin intermediate filaments (KRTs) and keratin keratin-associated proteins (KAPs) have been extensively researched. The KAPs form a matrix in which the KRTs are embedded. In sheep, KRTAP1.1 (previously B2A) is one of the four genes encoding proteins that make up the KAP1.n family. The ovine KRTAP1.1 gene is clustered with the KRTAP1.3 and KRTAP1.4 genes on chromosome 11. In this chapter, the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) – Applied Fragment Length Polymorphism (AFLP) typing method used to detect polymorphism in the KRTAP1.1 gene is reviewed. Three length variation KRTAP1.1 alleles; named A, B and C, of the lengths 341 base pair, 311 base pair and 281 base pair, respectively have been reported in three sheep breeds; Romney sheep of New Zealand, Merino sheep of New Zealand and Swakara sheep of Namibia. Genetic variation within the KRTs and KAPs can be further exploited to determine as to whether such variation impacts on wool quality. The presence of genetic variation within KRTs and KAPs offers opportunities for the development of gene markers affecting wool and pelt quality traits.