Transcript variants and expression profiles analysis of Mitf gene in minipigs

ObjectTo identify transcript variants and expression patterns of porcine Mitf.Materials and methodsA pairwise BLAST search at NCBI database was performed to deduce the structure of porcine Mitf gene. Subsequently, 5′ RACE and fluorescent quantitative RT-PCR were used to analyze the expression pattern of porcine Mitf in different tissues.ResultsFour transcript variants of porcine Mitf, MITF-A, MITF-H, MITF-M and MITF-SUS were identified, all sharing high homology with those in humans, except Mitf-SUS.ConclusionThe sequence of porcine Mitf appear highly homologous to human MITF. However, only 4 transcript variants of porcine Mitf were identified in these minipigs, less than the 9 transcript variants in human MITF.