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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Athens, Georgia » U.S. National Poultry Research Center » Quality and Safety Assessment Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #404253
Research Project: Assessment of Quality Attributes of Poultry Products, Grain, Seed, Nuts, and Feed

Location: Quality and Safety Assessment Research Unit

Title: Characterization and expression analyses of chicken oncomodulin genes and association with breast myopathies in broilers

Author
item Kong, Byungwhi
item SHAKERI, MAJID - Oak Ridge Institute For Science And Education (ORISE)
item CHOI, JANGHAN - Oak Ridge Institute For Science And Education (ORISE)
item Zhuang, Hong
item Bowker, Brian

Submitted to: Poultry Science Association Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/10/2023
Publication Date: 7/10/2023
Citation: Kong, B.C., Shakeri, M., Choi, J., Zhuang, H., Bowker, B.C. 2023. Characterization and expression analyses of chicken oncomodulin genes and association with breast myopathies in broilers. Poultry Science Association Meeting Abstract. 102/139.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Oncomodulins (OCMs), a.k.a. parvalbumins, are small molecules that bind calcium ions with high affinity. They serve as Ca2+ buffers and in signaling pathways in muscle and neuron cells. Parvalbumins in fish meat are known to be allergens that induce immune reactions in human. For chickens, three parvalbumin molecules have been described at the protein level and are named chicken parvalbumin 1 (CPV1 or PVLAB) and -3 (CPV3 or OCM1) and avian thymic hormone (ATH or OCM3). OCM1 and OCM3 are highly expressed in the thymus. OCM1 is homologous to mammalian oncomodulins while OCM3 is similar in amphibians and reptiles, but OCM3 is absent in mammalian species. PVLAB is known to be abundant in chicken skeletal muscle. A recent study showed that the expression of a newly assigned chicken OCM4 was decreased in early pathogenic woody breast muscle in broilers at 3 wks of age. A gene cluster for OCM1, -3, and -4 is in chromosome 4, while a single gene of PVLAB is in chromosome 1. The Ca2+ signaling pathway is a potential candidate for inducing the onset of chicken breast myopathies. However, chicken OCMs have not been extensively studied in muscle tissues. In this study, we investigated the genetic specifications, tissue expressions, and differential expressions in chicken breast myopathies for all known chicken OCMs including OCM1, -3, -4 and PVLAB. Chicken breast muscles were collected from control (n=6), woody breast (n=7), and woody/white striping (n=7) phenotypes at 8 wks of age. RNAs were extracted, cDNAs synthesized with reverse transcriptase, and conventional PCR and qPCR analyses were conducted for determining mRNA sequences/isoforms and for quantifying mRNA expression, respectively. PVLAB were highly expressed in all tissues examined. OCM3 was expressed in all tissues, but two isoforms were identified. One OCM3 isoform was found in thymus, thigh, and breast muscle, while the other isoform was found in liver, lung, heart, intestine, and kidney. OCM4 was barely expressed in thymus, thigh, and breast muscle. OCM1 was not highly expressed in any of the tissues tested, which was incongruent with earlier findings. Quantitative PCR results showed that expression of OCM3 and PVLAB were increased in woody breast muscle and increased even greater in woody/white striping muscles. Results indicated that OCM3 and PVLAB, but not OCM1 and -4, could be involved in the imbalance of Ca2+ buffers and signaling pathways in chicken breast myopathies.