Abstract

Fatty acid transport proteins (FATPs) are a family of proteins involved in fatty acid uptake and activation. The tissues and ontogenic expression profiles of the critical genes participating in fatty acid metabolism have little been systematically investigated in goose. To gain insight into the gene-regulation processes in goose fatty acid metabolism, we detected the expression profiles of FATP1 and FATP4 transcripts in goose tissues using the quantitative real-time PCR method in two goose breeds: Zhejiang white goose and Landes goose. The results show that FATP1 and FATP4genes were ubiquitously expressed in all seven studied geese tissues. Both genes exhibited tissue-specific expression pattern in mRNA level with the highest expression level in leg muscle and the lowest in abdominal fat. The liver and heart were also two important tissues for both of genes expression. The growth points at 35 and 56 days were important points for both of genes expression. In addition, for the two breeds, both genes showed Zhejiang white goose had higher expression than Landes goose. It can be speculated that the expression of FATP1 and FATP4 genes may have breed-specific. The results could serve as a primary reference for the expression profile of goose fatty acid metabolism.

Key words: Expression pattern, FATP1, FATP4, Landes goose, Zhejiang white goose.