Disruption of FGF5 in Cashmere Goats Using CRISPR/Cas9 Results in More Secondary Hair Follicles and Longer Fibers

    October 2016 in “ PLoS ONE ”
    Xiaolong Wang, Bei Cai, Jiankui Zhou, Haijing Zhu, Yiyuan Niu, Baohua Ma, Honghao Yu, Anmin Lei, Hailong Yan, Qiaoyan Shen, Lei Shi, Xiaoe Zhao, Jinlian Hua, Xingxu Huang, Lei Qu, Yulin Chen
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    TLDR CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing in cashmere goats increases hair follicles and fiber length, boosting cashmere yield.
    The study demonstrated that using CRISPR/Cas9 technology to disrupt the FGF5 gene in cashmere goats led to an increased number of secondary hair follicles and longer fibers, resulting in a higher cashmere yield. The experiment involved 19 gene-modified goats, with 6 showing single gene disruption, and these goats exhibited significantly longer coat and cashmere fibers compared to controls, with an average increase of 92.75 g of cashmere per animal. The genetic modifications were confirmed at both morphological and genetic levels, and the knockout alleles were likely capable of germline transmission, indicating potential for population expansion. This research highlighted the potential of CRISPR/Cas9 for genetic improvement in livestock.
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