Detection of polymorphisms in the prion-like protein Doppel (PRND) gene in Jeju black cattle

Prion protein (PrP) plays a central role in bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). Given the structural and biological similarity to PrP, recent research has focused on Doppel (Dpl) protein, which is encoded by the prion-like protein Doppel (PRND) gene. In this study, we characterized the PRND genetic polymorphism in 100 Jeju black cattle, a native Korean breed. We predicted the potential effect of nonsynonymous single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on the Dpl protein function using three in silico tools: SIFT, PANTHER, and PolyPhen-2. Finally, we performed a comparative analysis of the genotype distribution of c.395A>G (Q132R) between German BSE-infected cattle and Korean healthy cattle to assess the BSE susceptibility of Korean cattle. We found eight SNPs, including three novel SNPs c.-7C>T, c.172G>A (A58T), and c.537+83C>T. Only c.172G>A was predicted by SIFT to exert a deleterious effect. According to the comparative analysis, Holstein and Jeju black cattle exhibited a higher potential risk for BSE. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the genetic characteristics of the PRND gene in Jeju black cattle.