›› 2013, Vol. 40 ›› Issue (3): 160-168.

Previous Articles     Next Articles

Research Progress of Polymorphism and Expression of Defensins in vivo of Livestock

LI Yan, YANG Yin-feng   

  1. College of Veterinary Medicine, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot 010018, China
  • Received:2012-08-01 Online:2013-03-20 Published:2013-03-19

Abstract: Antimicrobial peptides have important effects on the innate resistance system of human and livestock due to their activity against bacteria, viruses and fungi. They also are expected to be used as preventive and therapeutic medicine. Therefore they are called 'new generation antibiotics'. Antimicrobial peptides are cationic peptides, and the most numerous group of them is a family of defensins. Among them the most common are peptides with a beta-sheet structure containing three intra-molecular disulphide bonds, called defensins, comprising three classes: alpha-, beta- and theta-defensin. The family of beta-defensins is the largest one, and their transcripts have been found in many tissues of human and livestock. The aim of this paper is to present the current knowledge about antimicrobial peptides from the defensins family in farm animals, their expression, polymorphism, as well as the potential of their use as genetic markers of health and production traits.

Key words: livestock; defensins; expression; polymorphism

CLC Number: