Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2018 Aug 24;109(6):700-706.
doi: 10.1093/jhered/esy024.

Polymorphisms in MC1R and ASIP Genes are Associated with Coat Color Variation in the Arabian Camel

Faisal Almathen  1   2 , Haitham Elbir  2 , Hussain Bahbahani  3 , Joram Mwacharo  4 , Olivier Hanotte  5   6
Affiliations

Polymorphisms in MC1R and ASIP Genes are Associated with Coat Color Variation in the Arabian Camel

Faisal Almathen et al. J Hered. .

Abstract

Pigmentation in mammals is primarily determined by the distribution of eumelanin and pheomelanin, the ratio of which is mostly controlled by the activity of melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R) and agouti signaling protein (ASIP) genes. Using 91 animals from 10 Arabian camel populations, that included the 4 predominant coat color phenotypes observed in the dromedary (light brown, dark brown, black, and white), we investigated the effects of the MC1R and ASIP sequence variants and identified candidate polymorphisms associated with coat color variation. In particular, we identified a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), found in the coding region of MC1R (901C/T), linked to the white coat color, whereas a 1-bp deletion (23delT/T) and a SNP (25G/A) in exon 2 of ASIP are associated with both black and dark-brown coat colors. Our results also indicate support that the light-brown coat color is likely the ancestral coat color for the dromedary. These sequence variations at the MC1R and ASIP genes represent the first documented evidence of candidate polymorphisms associated with Mendelian traits in the dromedary.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
The different types of Arabian Peninsula dromedary; following Abdallah and Faye (2012) and Al-Eknah (personal communication).
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
The dromedary melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R) gene. (a) The exon region is shown as a solid black box; un-translated regions are shown as broken lines (not drawn to scale). Single nucleotide polymorphisms are shown in the region where they occurred. (b) Nucleotide and amino acid sequence comparisons for the last segment of the coding region for the 4 defined dromedary coat color groups and other camelids. Polymorphisms are shown inside the nonsolid box.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Agouti signaling protein (ASIP) gene sequences according to the alpaca (Feeley et al. 2011). (a) The exons are shown as solid black boxes; un-translated regions are shown as broken lines (not drawn to scale). Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are shown in the regions where they occurred. (b) Nucleotide and amino acid sequence comparisons for exon 2 for the 4 defined dromedary coat color phenotypes and other camelids. Polymorphisms are shown inside the nonsolid box.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Abdallah HR, Faye B. 2012. Phenotypic classification of Saudi Arabian camel (Camelus dromedarius) by their body measurements. Emir J Food Agric. 24:272–280.
    1. Almathen F. 2014. Genetic diversity and demographic history of the dromedary camel (Camelus dromedarius) [PhD thesis]. [Nottingham (UK)]: University of Nottingham.
    1. Chandramohan B, Renieri C, La Manna V, La Terza A. 2013. The alpaca agouti gene: genomic locus, transcripts and causative mutations of eumelanic and pheomelanic coat color. Gene. 521:303–310. - PubMed
    1. Cieslak M, Reissmann M, Hofreiter M, Ludwig A. 2011. Colours of domestication. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc. 86:885–899. - PubMed
    1. Cone RD, Lu D, Koppula S, Vage DI, Klungland H, Boston B, Chen W, Orth DN, Pouton C, Kesterson RA. 1996. The melanocortin receptors: agonists, antagonists, and the hormonal control of pigmentation. Recent Prog Horm Res. 51:287–317. - PubMed

Publication types

Substances