The world's first PRLR gene-edited Leizhou black goat was recently born at the Guangdong Province Engineering Research Center for Western Guangdong Livestock and Poultry Biological Breeding, Guangdong Ocean University. This breakthrough marks significant progress in China's development of black goat genetic resources adapted to the hot, humid tropical coastal climateand suited to tidal flat grazing fields, providing new germplasm to support sustainable herbivorous animal husbandry in the southern and coastal regions of China.
Global greenhouse effects have led to frequent high-temperature and high-humidity weather, making heat stress one of the main limiting factors for animal husbandry production. Heat stress not only causes reductions in production performance, reproductive disturbance, and health issues, but also significantly increases livestock mortality rates and lowers feed conversion efficiency.
The PRLR gene encodes the prolactin receptor, whose mediated signaling pathway plays a key role in animals' responses to heat stress, in regulating metabolic heat generation, and in maintaining water and salt balance. A biological breeding innovation team at Guangdong Ocean University, working on Leizhou goats, combined the technologiesof estrous synchronization, gene editing, and embryo transfer to successfully construct a truncated variant of the PRLR heat-tolerant protein with two tyrosine residues. Following embryo transfer and a 150-day gestation period, a healthy gene-edited black goat was born on August 25th. It is currently growing and developing well.
Researcher Gan Shangquan, the team's chief scientist, stated that this achievement provided scientific and technological support for the high-quality development of animal husbandry in coastal regions. The team plans to move forward with pilot-scale trials, promotional activities, and industrial-application research to promote the efficient use of premium animal genetic resources on marginal lands such as tidal flats and saline-alkali soils.
世界首例PRLR基因编辑雷州黑山羊诞生
世界首例PRLR基因编辑雷州黑山羊近日在广东海洋大学“粤西畜禽生物育种广东省工程研究中心”诞生。该突破标志着我国在培育适应热带滨海高湿热气候、适宜沿海“滩涂牧场”放牧的黑山羊种质资源创新方面取得重大进展，为我国南方及滨海地区草食畜牧业可持续发展提供了新的种源支撑。
全球温室效应导致高温高湿天气频发，热应激已成为制约畜牧业生产的主要因素之一。热应激不仅导致动物生产性能下降、繁殖障碍和健康问题，还显著提高牲畜死亡率并降低饲料转化效率。
PRLR基因编码催乳素受体，其介导的信号通路在动物应对热应激、调节代谢产热和维持水盐平衡中发挥关键作用。广东海洋大学雷州山羊生物育种创新团队综合运用同期发情、基因编辑与胚胎移植等先进技术，成功构建出一个含两个酪氨酸残基的截短型PRLR耐热蛋白变异体。经胚胎移植和150天妊娠期，一只健康基因编辑羔羊于8月25日顺利出生，目前生长发育状态良好。
团队首席科学家甘尚权研究员表示，该突破为沿海地区畜牧业的高质量发展提供了科技支撑。团队未来还将进一步推进中试推广与产业化应用研究，推动优良动物遗传资源在滩涂、盐碱等边际土地的高效利用。
文 | 记者 余胜容
译丨郑奕玲
英文审校丨赵凡