06-21-2009, 09:44 PM
[font "Tahoma"][size 2]Pigeon Genetics Research--University of Utah
[/size][/font]Hi all,
I know a few people have already seen this--so if you're seeing this a second time, I apologize in advance.
I've been in contact with Dr. Mike Shapiro from the University of Utah. They're undertaking a research project on the genetics of domesticated pigeons. As such, they're collecting feathers from various breeds of domesticated pigeons. Rather than try to relate what they're doing, here's what they're doing in Dr. Shapiro's own words:
[indent]Here's a bit more detail about the work we're doing. Over the next few years, we hope to accomplish three major goals.
1. Determine the relationships and genetic composition of different breeds
This is why we're collecting feathers from all over the country (and potentially globally -- our plea for feathers has spread to Europe, Asia, and Australia). We'll extract DNA from the base of the feathers, then perform an assay to see how similar certain regions of the genome are in different individual birds. This will tell us which breeds share the most genetic information, and are thus closely related to each other. As we're finding with our limited sample of 200 birds from 35 breeds, these relationships are not always obvious. However, we know that our experiments are working. For example, even with our small sample we're seeing that all of the pouter breeds share an enormous amount of genetic information, as do many of the tumblers. On the other hand, we can also tell from this analysis which breeds have been crossed to other breeds in the recent past. In our sample, breeders of homers and Chinese owls seem to be doing a lot of outcrossing, so it's difficult to tell with whom they share the most similarity. Additional samples of these and other breeds will help resolve this type of problem.
2. Find the genes that control different traits in different breeds
This is not the same as naming color "genes" for patterns such as ash red, blue, dilute, etc. We're looking for the actual DNA sequences and changes that control different traits. Here's an example of what I mean using a gene that deals with color. A gene called the Melanocortin-1 Receptor (a.k.a. Mc1r) produces a molecule that sits on the surface of body cells that produce pigment, such as some of the cells at the base of hair or feather follicles. Changes in the DNA sequence of Mc1r are known to lead to dramatic color changes in a number of different animals. For instance, virtually all humans with red hair have a change (mutation) in this gene, and Mc1r mutations in other animals (bears, cats, mice, lizards, snakes) can lead to dramatic color changes as well. Mc1r mutations have also been shown to change color patterns in birds such as swans and the arctic skua. Following up on this potential lead, we determined the DNA sequence for the Mc1r gene from many different breeds of pigeon, some with white feathers, some with dark feathers, and some in between. If Mc1r was responsible for color differences, we would have seen one type of sequence in the dark birds, and another version in the lighter birds; however, this is not what we found. Surprisingly, even though this gene controls color variation in so many other animals including some birds, we did not find similar mutations in any pigeons. This preliminary study shows why pigeons are potentially so interesting -- if we find the gene(s) that control color changes in pigeons, we'll know a lot more about the molecules that control pigmentation in general. In addition to color changes, we also interested in major changes in the head/beak skeleton, leg length, and feather patterning. Very little is known about the genes that control these processes in any animal, so pigeons provide a great opportunity to learn something completely new about how animals are built.
To do this part of the project, we'll use techniques that are very similar to the way that human/medical geneticists track down the genes responsible for genetic diseases. Pending available funding, we will construct a large loft on the roof of our building that can accommodate approximately 300 offspring from our crosses of different breeds. We are receiving a great deal of help in the design of this facility from the president of our local pigeon club, who has built several lofts himself, and we hope to begin construction soon. I'll spare you the gory details about the DNA-based molecular techniques, but our goal is to find parts of the pigeon DNA code that control long beaks vs. short beaks, muffed legs/feet vs. scales, dark vs. light pigmentation (and gradations in between), crop vs. no crop, etc. The techniques we will use for this part of the study are also the same as we've been using for our highly successful stickleback fish studies (such as the one in the NSF press release above), so we are confident that this strategy is a good one.
3. Determine the role of an important group of molecules in determining body size
As is the case with Mc1r, the same genes appear to be used over and over again in different animals to control body size. These genes are known to be involved in controlling body size in many different animals, including human and dogs. These genes have also recently been shown to play an important role in determining longevity. People and dogs with different versions of these genes, on average, have different body sizes and life spans. We want to test whether this same group of genes plays a role in pigeon body size as well. Again, pigeons are an ideal animal to use for this type of study because they show so much size variation between breeds. This part of the study will help us understand whether the gene changes that determine size and longevity in humans and dogs are specific to humans and dogs, or whether they're used in other animals as well. Ultimately, our results will give us new information about the genes involved in animal variation in general.
I hope this additional information help you to understand our work a bit better, and I hope I didn't overload you with biological jargon. I'm happy to answer additional questions should they arise, and feel free to pass this information along to others.
Best regards,
Mike[/indent]
If you'd care to help Dr. Shapiro (either with pigeon feathers or with financial assistance) you'd be wisest to contact him directly at [url "mailto
hapiro@biology.utah.edu"]shapiro@biology.utah.edu[/url]. He can fill you in on additional details or put you in contact with the right folks to assist. I am getting some envelopes from him to send pigeon feathers. I believe what would help them most right now is feathers from a wide variety of breeds for comparison purposes.
I would also point out that this is an excellent opportunity for any science-minded 4-H members to help with some genuine research. Collecting feathers would not be terribly difficult--just a little bit time consuming. I would be happy to help any 4-H kids that might care to help this project. The more feathers they get from differing pigeon breeds the faster they can progress with their work.
You can see a bit about Dr. Shapiro's other work here [url "http://www.biology.utah.edu/shapiro/Home.html"]http://www.biology.utah.edu/shapiro/Home.html[/url]
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[/size][/font]Hi all,
I know a few people have already seen this--so if you're seeing this a second time, I apologize in advance.
I've been in contact with Dr. Mike Shapiro from the University of Utah. They're undertaking a research project on the genetics of domesticated pigeons. As such, they're collecting feathers from various breeds of domesticated pigeons. Rather than try to relate what they're doing, here's what they're doing in Dr. Shapiro's own words:
[indent]Here's a bit more detail about the work we're doing. Over the next few years, we hope to accomplish three major goals.
1. Determine the relationships and genetic composition of different breeds
This is why we're collecting feathers from all over the country (and potentially globally -- our plea for feathers has spread to Europe, Asia, and Australia). We'll extract DNA from the base of the feathers, then perform an assay to see how similar certain regions of the genome are in different individual birds. This will tell us which breeds share the most genetic information, and are thus closely related to each other. As we're finding with our limited sample of 200 birds from 35 breeds, these relationships are not always obvious. However, we know that our experiments are working. For example, even with our small sample we're seeing that all of the pouter breeds share an enormous amount of genetic information, as do many of the tumblers. On the other hand, we can also tell from this analysis which breeds have been crossed to other breeds in the recent past. In our sample, breeders of homers and Chinese owls seem to be doing a lot of outcrossing, so it's difficult to tell with whom they share the most similarity. Additional samples of these and other breeds will help resolve this type of problem.
2. Find the genes that control different traits in different breeds
This is not the same as naming color "genes" for patterns such as ash red, blue, dilute, etc. We're looking for the actual DNA sequences and changes that control different traits. Here's an example of what I mean using a gene that deals with color. A gene called the Melanocortin-1 Receptor (a.k.a. Mc1r) produces a molecule that sits on the surface of body cells that produce pigment, such as some of the cells at the base of hair or feather follicles. Changes in the DNA sequence of Mc1r are known to lead to dramatic color changes in a number of different animals. For instance, virtually all humans with red hair have a change (mutation) in this gene, and Mc1r mutations in other animals (bears, cats, mice, lizards, snakes) can lead to dramatic color changes as well. Mc1r mutations have also been shown to change color patterns in birds such as swans and the arctic skua. Following up on this potential lead, we determined the DNA sequence for the Mc1r gene from many different breeds of pigeon, some with white feathers, some with dark feathers, and some in between. If Mc1r was responsible for color differences, we would have seen one type of sequence in the dark birds, and another version in the lighter birds; however, this is not what we found. Surprisingly, even though this gene controls color variation in so many other animals including some birds, we did not find similar mutations in any pigeons. This preliminary study shows why pigeons are potentially so interesting -- if we find the gene(s) that control color changes in pigeons, we'll know a lot more about the molecules that control pigmentation in general. In addition to color changes, we also interested in major changes in the head/beak skeleton, leg length, and feather patterning. Very little is known about the genes that control these processes in any animal, so pigeons provide a great opportunity to learn something completely new about how animals are built.
To do this part of the project, we'll use techniques that are very similar to the way that human/medical geneticists track down the genes responsible for genetic diseases. Pending available funding, we will construct a large loft on the roof of our building that can accommodate approximately 300 offspring from our crosses of different breeds. We are receiving a great deal of help in the design of this facility from the president of our local pigeon club, who has built several lofts himself, and we hope to begin construction soon. I'll spare you the gory details about the DNA-based molecular techniques, but our goal is to find parts of the pigeon DNA code that control long beaks vs. short beaks, muffed legs/feet vs. scales, dark vs. light pigmentation (and gradations in between), crop vs. no crop, etc. The techniques we will use for this part of the study are also the same as we've been using for our highly successful stickleback fish studies (such as the one in the NSF press release above), so we are confident that this strategy is a good one.
3. Determine the role of an important group of molecules in determining body size
As is the case with Mc1r, the same genes appear to be used over and over again in different animals to control body size. These genes are known to be involved in controlling body size in many different animals, including human and dogs. These genes have also recently been shown to play an important role in determining longevity. People and dogs with different versions of these genes, on average, have different body sizes and life spans. We want to test whether this same group of genes plays a role in pigeon body size as well. Again, pigeons are an ideal animal to use for this type of study because they show so much size variation between breeds. This part of the study will help us understand whether the gene changes that determine size and longevity in humans and dogs are specific to humans and dogs, or whether they're used in other animals as well. Ultimately, our results will give us new information about the genes involved in animal variation in general.
I hope this additional information help you to understand our work a bit better, and I hope I didn't overload you with biological jargon. I'm happy to answer additional questions should they arise, and feel free to pass this information along to others.
Best regards,
Mike[/indent]
If you'd care to help Dr. Shapiro (either with pigeon feathers or with financial assistance) you'd be wisest to contact him directly at [url "mailto
hapiro@biology.utah.edu"]shapiro@biology.utah.edu[/url]. He can fill you in on additional details or put you in contact with the right folks to assist. I am getting some envelopes from him to send pigeon feathers. I believe what would help them most right now is feathers from a wide variety of breeds for comparison purposes. I would also point out that this is an excellent opportunity for any science-minded 4-H members to help with some genuine research. Collecting feathers would not be terribly difficult--just a little bit time consuming. I would be happy to help any 4-H kids that might care to help this project. The more feathers they get from differing pigeon breeds the faster they can progress with their work.
You can see a bit about Dr. Shapiro's other work here [url "http://www.biology.utah.edu/shapiro/Home.html"]http://www.biology.utah.edu/shapiro/Home.html[/url]
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