Molecular characterization of 3’ UTR of Nramp1 gene in Gaolao breed of cattle

The Nramp1 (Natural resistances macrophage protein1) gene or recently renamed Slc11a1 (solute carrier family 11 member1) is a member of a large family of genes coding for metal ion-transporting proteins. Nramp1 gene plays a critical role in innate immunity favoring bacterial killing by macrophages in addition to its influence on adaptative immunity. The aim of the present investigation was to identify the genetic variations in the 3’UTR (Untranslated region) of Nramp1 gene in the Gaolao breed (Bos indicus) cattle, using the technique PCR-SSCP and by sequencing. PCR-SSCP (Single Strand conformational polymorphism) of 440 bp amplicon of Nramp1 gene revealed four common SSCP patterns in Gaolao breed. The chi-square test revealed that difference between observed frequencies of different patterns in Gaolao was non-significant at 5% level of significance. The sequence analysis of Nramp1 region did not revealed sequence variation. The sequence analysis of Nramp1 region bare only two sequence variation in four SSCP patterns. This indicates that this region is either heterologous or SSCP could be independent of sequence variation.