AUTHOR=Burrows L. E. R. , Zhou H. , Frampton C. M. A. , Forrest R. H. J. , Hickford J. G. H. 

TITLE=Ovine FABP4 Variation and Its Association With Flystrike Susceptibility

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Genetics

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/genetics/articles/10.3389/fgene.2021.675305

DOI=10.3389/fgene.2021.675305

ISSN=1664-8021

ABSTRACT=<p>Flystrike is a major cost and a welfare issue for the New Zealand sheep industry. There are several factors that can predispose sheep to flystrike, such as having fleecerot, a urine-stained breech, and “dags” (an accumulation of fecal matter in the wool of the breech). The FABP4 gene (<italic>FABP4</italic>) has been associated with variation in ovine fleecerot resistance, with a strong genetic correlation existing between fleecerot and flystrike occurrence. In this study, blood samples were collected from sheep with and without flystrike for DNA typing. PCR-SSCP analyses were used to genotype two regions of ovine <italic>FABP4</italic>. Sheep with the <italic>A</italic><sub>1</sub> variant of <italic>FABP4</italic> were found to be less likely (odds ratio 0.689, <italic>P</italic> = 0.014) to have flystrike than those without <italic>A</italic><sub>1</sub>. The likelihood of flystrike occurrence decreased as copy number of <italic>A</italic><sub>1</sub> increased (odds ratio 0.695, <italic>P</italic> = 0.006). This suggests that <italic>FABP4</italic> might be a candidate gene for flystrike resilience in sheep, although further research is required to verify this association.</p>