Quick Summary
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Phenotype: Curly coat (Devon Rex); hairless coat (Sphynx)
Mode of Inheritance: Autosomal recessive
Alleles: N = Normal coat, HR = Sphynx hairless, DR = Devon Rex curly
Breeds appropriate for testing: Sphynx, Devon Rex
Explanation of Results:
- Cats with N/N genotype will have normal coats. They cannot transmit this hairless variant or this Devon Rex variant to their offspring.
- Cat with N/HR genotype will have normal coats, but are carriers of the hairless variant. They will transmit this hairless variant to 50% of their offspring. Matings between two carriers of the Sphynx hairless variant are predicted to produce 25% hairless kittens.
- Cats with N/DR genotype will have normal coats but are carriers of the Devon Rex curly variant. They will transmit this curly variant to 50% of their offspring. Matings between two carriers of the Devon Rex curly variant are predicted to produce 25% Devon Rex curly-coated kittens.
- Cats with HR/HR genotype will be hairless. They will transmit this hairless variant to all of their offspring.
- Cats with DR/DR genotype will have curly coats. They will transmit this Devon Rex curly variant to all of their offspring.
- Cats with HR/DR genotype will be hairless but do not "breed true" to the hairless phenotype; they can produce normal, hairless, or curly coated offspring depending on the genotype of the cat they are bred to.
Sample Collection:
Cat DNA tests are carried out using cells collected from your cat's cheeks and gums using household cotton swabs.
The cat DNA submission form with instructions, pricing, and a place to tape the cotton swabs can be printed from your home computer after signing up for a MyVGL account and placing an order. Test kits are not mailed.
Step-By-Step Instructions:
1.
Purchase regular household cotton swabs for cat DNA collection (the cotton swabs can be purchased at a pharmacy or drug store)
2.
Use both ends of the two cotton swabs for a total of four swabs.
3.
Collect the DNA sample by swabbing the cheek and gums of the cat.
4.
After swabbing the cheek and gums, tape the cotton swabs to the bar-coded submission form printed from your MyVGL account.
Domestic cats have a variety of coat colors and hair types. Long and short hair phenotypes are common, but there are also other mutations that produce curly and nearly hairless coats. Two of the breeds of cats derived from such mutations are Devon Rex, a curly coat variety that appeared in 1959, and the nearly hairless breed Sphynx, which originated from another mutation in 1966.
Research from Dr. Leslie Lyons’ lab at the University of California, Davis (now at University of Missouri) demonstrated that these 2 mutations are in the gene Keratin 71 (KRT71). The nearly hairless coat of the Sphynx breed is recessive to normal coat, and the curly coat of the Devon Rex breed is recessive to the hairless Sphynx coat.
Testing for the Sphynx hairless and Devon Rex curly mutations assists breeders in determining if a cat carries these mutations. For breeders of Sphynx, the tests identify hairless cats that carry the Devon Rex mutation and would not breed true for the hairless phenotype depending on the genotype of the mate.