Molecular cloning and characterization analysis of LEF-1 gene from Inner Mongolia Cashmere Goat

LEF-1, lymphocyte enhancer-binding factor-1, is a member of the LEF-1/TCF (T cell-specific transcription factor) family of high mobility group (HMG) transcription factors. LEF-1/TCF is downstream of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. LEF-1 requires Wnt signaling and stabilized β-catenin to express the hair-specific keratin genes and control hair differentiation. Tcf3/LEF-1 complex has a key role in controlling skin stem cells differentiation. Thus this study amplified LEF-1 cDNA by RTPCR from Inner Mongolia Cashmere Goat (Capra hircus) to produce a transgenic goat with increased cashmere production. The molecular characterization of the LEF-1 gene was described. The amplified fragment is 1132bp (HM059927) in length, including an ORF of 1116 bp corresponding to a polypeptide of 371 amino acids residues with 41.2 kDa predicted molecular mass. The full cDNA nucleotide sequence has a 98% identity with bovine and 94% identity with transcript variant 2 of human. The amino acid sequence is 98% identical to the human isoform 2. Furthermore, a representative HMG-box and a β-catenin binding domain were predicted via the NCBI CDD (Conserved Domain Database). The goat LEF-1 gene cDNA was cloned and its molecular characterization was analyzed by bioinformatics. To our knowledge this is the first reported.