Polymorphism of the growth hormone gene of red deer (Cervus elaphus)

In mammals, pituitary growth hormone (GH) is usually encoded by a single gene, but in some caprine ruminants there are two GH genes, and higher primates have a cluster of at least 5 GH-like genes. We have previously shown that in several artiodactyls (chevrotain, giraffe, and hippopotamus) there are two GH gene sequences, differing by 5–21 nucleotides (nt), but whether these arise from two distinct gene loci is unclear. We report here that in the red deer (Cervus elaphus) also there are two main GH gene sequences (designated A and B) differing at about 23 nt. Investigation of DNA from a number of individual animals demonstrated that this variation was due to allelic polymorphism, with individuals carrying either the A-type or the B-type sequence, or both. A- and B-type sequences showed some variation between individuals. The overall difference between the A and B sequences is substantial—greater than that between the GH gene sequences of three distinct bovine species, Bos taurus (ox), Bos indicus (zebu) and Bos grunniens (yak). The biological significance of the presence of two markedly differing GH gene sequences in red deer is not clear, but it is notable that several of the differences between the A and B sequences occur in the 5′ upstream region, which may be associated with differences in gene expression.