Phenotypes

Awasthi Mishra et al. (2017) reported a likely causal variant for this classic phene: "The belt-associated variant was a copy number variant (CNV) involving the quadruplication of a 6 kb non-coding sequence located approximately 16 kb upstream of the TWIST2 gene. Increased copy numbers at this CNV were strongly associated with the belt phenotype in a cohort of 333 cases and 1322 controls. We hypothesized that the CNV causes aberrant expression...

In a conference abstract, Marron and Beever (2012) reported the causal mutation of hypotrichosis in Belted Galloway cattle to be "an A1684T substitution in exon 9 of hephaestin-like 1 (HEPHL1) resulting in a premature stop codon (K562X)". They further noted that "Hephaestin-like 1 is responsible for copper ion transport. Copper deficiency has been shown to cause anemia, poor immune function, slower growth rates and discolored or poor hair coat...