ACTA VETERINARIA ET ZOOTECHNICA SINICA ›› 2008, Vol. 39 ›› Issue (10): 1289-1294.doi:

• 遗传繁育 •     Next Articles

Expression of Fibroblast Growth Factors (FGF2) and Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptors (FGFR1) in Organs of Cloned Cattle that Die within Hours after Birth

LI Shi-jie1, 2, LI Dong-jie4, DU Wei-hua3, FAN Bao-liang1, 2,
DAI Yun-ping2, LI Ning2*
  

  1. 1.College of Life Science, Agricultural University of Hebei, Baoding 071001,China; 2.State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193,China; 3. Institute of Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100193,China;4. College of Life Science and Engineering, Hebei Science and Technology University, Shijiazhuang 050018,China
  • Received:1900-01-01 Revised:1900-01-01 Online:2008-10-24 Published:2008-10-24

Abstract: Cloning by somatic nuclear transfer is an inefficient process in which many of the cloned animals die shortly after birth and display organ abnormalities. In an effort to determine the possible roles of FGFs played in neonatal death and organ abnormalities, we have examined expression patterns of fibroblast growth factor (FGF2) and their receptor (FGFR1) in six organs (heart, liver, spleen, lung, kidney and brain) of both neonatal death cloned bovines (n=9) and normal control calves (n=3) produced by artificial insemination (AI) using real-time quantitative RT-PCR. The effect of the age of the fibroblast donor cell on the gene expression profiles was also investigated. Aberrant expressions of FGFR1 were found in some studied tissues, but the expression of FGF2 had similar levels with the normal controls. The expression of FGFR1 showed a higher level in heart and liver of both cloned bovines. Because FGF systems play an important role in embryo development and organogenesis, the aberrant transcription patterns detected in these clones may contribute to the defects of organs reported in neonatal death of clones.