Insulin and circadian rhythm genes of the Nile rat (Arvicanthis niloticus) are conserved and orthologous to those in the rat, mouse and human
The African grass or Nile rat (NR) ( Arvicanthis niloticus ) is a herbivorous diurnal rodent which is used as a biological model for research on type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and the circadian rhythm. Similar to humans, male NRs develop T2DM with high-carbohydrate diets. The NR thus provides a uni...
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Published in | Genetica Vol. 152; no. 1; pp. 11 - 29 |
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Main Authors | , , , , , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
Cham
Springer International Publishing
01.02.2024
Springer Nature B.V |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | The African grass or Nile rat (NR) (
Arvicanthis niloticus
) is a herbivorous diurnal rodent which is used as a biological model for research on type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and the circadian rhythm. Similar to humans, male NRs develop T2DM with high-carbohydrate diets. The NR thus provides a unique opportunity to identify the nutritional and underlying genetic factors that characterise human T2DM, as well as the effects of potential anti-diabetic phytochemicals such as Water-Soluble Palm Fruit Extract. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) could help identify possible genetic causes why NRs spontaneously develop T2DM in captivity. In this study, we performed WGS on a hepatic deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) sample isolated from a male NR using PacBio high-fidelity long-read sequencing. The WGS data obtained were then
de novo
assembled and annotated using PacBio HiFi isoform sequencing (Iso-Seq) data as well as previous Illumina RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) data. Genes related to insulin and circadian rhythm pathways were present in the NR genome, similar to orthologues in the rat, mouse and human genomes. T2DM development in the NR is thus most likely not attributable to structural differences in these genes when compared to other biological models. Further studies are warranted to gain additional insights on the genetic-environmental factors which underlie the
genetic permissiveness
of NRs to develop T2DM. |
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Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 |
ISSN: | 0016-6707 1573-6857 |
DOI: | 10.1007/s10709-023-00202-z |