Objective: Pigs share many physiological, anatomical and genomic similarities with humans, which make them suitable models for biomedical researches. Understanding the genetic status of Yucatan miniature pigs (YMPs) and their association with human diseases will help to assess their potential as biomedical model animals. This study was performed to identify non-synonymous single nucleotide polymorphisms (nsSNPs) in selective sweep regions of the genome of YMPs and present the genetic nsSNP distributions that are potentially associated with disease occurrence in humans. Methods: nsSNPs in whole genome resequencing data from 12 YMPs were identified and annotated to predict their possible effects on protein function. Sorting intolerant from tolerant (SIFT) and polymorphism phenotyping v2 analyses were used, and gene ontology (GO) network and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathway analyses were performed. Results: The results showed that 8,462 genes, encompassing 72,067 nsSNPs were identified, and 118 nsSNPs in 46 genes were predicted as deleterious. GO network analysis classified 13 genes into 5 GO terms (p<0.05) that were associated with kidney development and metabolic processes. Seven genes encompassing nsSNPs were classified into the term associated with Alzheimer's disease by referencing the genetic association database. The KEGG pathway analysis identified only one significantly enriched pathway (p<0.05), hsa04080: Neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction, among the transcripts. Conclusion: The number of deleterious nsSNPs in YMPs was identified and then these variants-containing genes in YMPs data were adopted as the putative human diseases-related genes. The results revealed that many genes encompassing nsSNPs in YMPs were related to the various human genes which are potentially associated with kidney development and metabolic processes as well as human disease occurrence.

Oct4 is a crucial germ line‐specific transcription factor expressed in different pluripotent cells and downregulated in the process of differentiation. There are two conserved enhancers, called the distal enhancer (DE) and proximal enhancer (PE), in the 5′ upstream regulatory sequences (URSs) of the mouse Oct4 gene, which were demonstrated to control Oct4 expression independently in embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and epiblast stem cells (EpiSCs). We analyzed the URSs of the pig Oct4 and identified two similar enhancers that were highly consistent with the mouse DE and PE. A dual‐fluorescence reporter was later constructed by combining a DE‐free‐Oct4‐promoter‐driven EGFP reporter cassette with a PE‐free‐Oct4‐promoter‐driven mCherry reporter cassette. Then, it was tested in a mouse ESC‐like cell line (F9) and a mouse EpiSC‐like cell line (P19) before it is formally used for pig. As a result, a higher red fluorescence was observed in F9 cells, while green fluorescence was primarily detected in P19 cells. This fluorescence expression pattern in the two cell lines was consistent with that in the early naïve pluripotent state and late primed pluripotent state during differentiation of mouse ESCs. Hence, this reporter system will be a convenient tool for screening out ESC‐like naïve pluripotent stem cells from other metastable state cells in a heterogenous population.

Lipid-rich bovine serum albumin (LR-BSA) has been reported to increase the survival rate of blastocysts after freezing and thawing. However studies on the early development of?in vitro fertilised (IVF) embryos are still insufficient in?cattle....

In vitro embryo production (IVP) is a valuable technique for advancing cattle breeding and reproductive biotechnology. Nevertheless, embryos produced in vitro often display reduced developmental competence and cryotolerance compared with their...

Dohyun Kim, HakKyo Lee and Dae-Jin Kwon. Journal of Animal Reproduction and Biotechnology 2024;39:240-7. https://doi.org/10.12750/JARB.39.4.240