A Note on the Organization and Expression of β-defensin Genes in Polish Goats

Nucleotide (cds) and amino acids sequences of the caprine β2-defensin genes were in silico compared to search for the sequence variation and for the LAP gene sequences in the goat genome and for the presence of LAP gene transcripts in goat tissues. The comparison of the exon sequences revealed that the first 64 amino acids are identical in both LAP and β1-defensin. However, the GBD-1 prepropeptide is shorter by 18 amino acids due to the presence of the stop codon UAA at position 209-211 in GBD-1 mRNA. The LAP gene, which was found, so far, only in Indian goat breeds, is absent in the genome of Polish dairy goats. The introns of the caprine β1- and β2-defensin genes were, for the first time, sequenced; their sequences showed 99.6 % identity, differing in six nucleotide positions.