From:
Sukie Crandall
Date: 2007-04-24 19:03:48 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] Re: consensus on ferret environment lighting
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
I replied to this earlier from the website but
Yahoogroups seems to have lost it, although our
signal is very up and down today so that could
also be at least part of the problem.
Dominance is not reflected in rates of an allele
in the population. It can be reflected in how
much characteristics show up in a population,
though, because other genetic alleles may
be hidden in more individuals if those dominant
alleles are more common.
Population genetics involves rates of given alleles
(genetic variants) in the group.
Dominant and recessive are two terms that are used
when speaking of the genetics of an individual. They
denote one of many ways that alleles in an individual
can interact. There are certainly more such as the
resulting characteristics being blended, or even the
result of two alleles being together being more
extreme than either would be when combined with
different alleles.
There are even situations in which environmental
effects can alter characteristics. The stunting which
starvation can cause is an example. (BTW, if only
small stature results that is not necessarily less
healthy and can even be healthier.) A recent study
of human health indicates that over feeding newborns
may reduce their health later. Two sides of one source
of effect. Epigenetics is the study of how outside factors
affect how the individual presents. One marvelous
study was done on agouti mice who were bred for
becoming obese unusually easily and which also tend
to develop cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
Normally, they are a golden sand coloration. BUT if the
mother is fed a certain soy compound during pregnancy
the offspring from that pregnancy instead are darker,
slimmer, and less inclined to those health problems. In
fact, the more the mothers had of the compound during
pregnancy, the stronger those effects are. Eliminate the
compound from the diet and the offspring are normal
agouti. Epigenetics is an exciting new field.
If you think about it, it makes sense that some genetics
can be turned on or off by environmental factors. Gaining
fat more easily than the average individual can keep enough
of a population alive during a famine. It is not useful during
times of plenty, though. What genes are expressing
themselves and which aren't also may illustrate the largest
difference between humans and chimps genetically. We
share a huge number of genes, but we appear to have
different ones turned off. It may also be why rice have so much
more genetic material than we do if some of the material is
basically "emergency savings accounts" to get them through
unusual environmental pressures since they can't pick up
and move away.
At this point, though, studying possible vulnerabilities caused
by domestic breeding pressures chosen by the breeders, is in
its first stages so it makes sense to look first at things with
strong signatures. My own hopes are that when genetics
which can increase endocrinological disease rates in other
species are done, that at some point there will be the money to
also study things like neural crest genetic variants in ferrets. It
will take a lot of work to understand genetic vulnerabilities before
epigenetics in ferrets can be approached. Everything starts with
one step forward and the MEN genetics study work is truly the
excellent first place to look.
I highly recommend past posts of Dr. Brett Middleton, genetics
professor; Dr. Silvia Pizzi, molecular geneticist; and (if they are
not all gone due to Yahoogroups removing old posts), Dr. Leigh
Whittacher, molecular geneticist at Ferret-Genetics, and Dr. Brett
Middleton in the FHL Archives:
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/Ferret-Genetics/
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
A personal favorite:
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/YG3069
Sukie (not a vet)
Current FHL address:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth
Recommended ferret health links:
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
http://www.afip.org/ferrets/index.html
http://www.miamiferret.org/fhc/
http://www.ferretcongress.org/
http://www.trifl.org/index.shtml
http://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html
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