Polymorphism of the BCO2 gene and the content of carotenoids, retinol, and α-tocopherol in the liver and fat of rabbits

ABSTRACT The study was carried out to evaluate the effect of AAT-deletion mutation at codon 248 of the BCO2 gene on the content of lutein, β-carotene, retinol, and α-tocopherol in the liver and fat of crossbred rabbits. The experimental animals comprised 90 rabbits, produced by reciprocal crossing between ins/del heterozygous parents of Flemish Giant, New Zealand Red, and Termond White breeds. All rabbits in the litter were genotyped, given the same diet, and finally slaughtered at 140 d of age. It was found that regardless of the mating scheme employed, all del/del homozygotes had the yellow fat trait, whereas heterozygous and homozygotes animals without the AAT deletion (ins/ins) developed white fat. Lutein concentration in fat was over 13-fold higher in rabbits carrying a homozygous AAT-deletion than in the remaining animals. A codon deletion in the BCO2 gene also contributes to an increase in the concentrations of β-carotene and α-tocopherol in the adipose tissue of rabbits. However, no differences were observed in the content of the analyzed components between heterozygous and homozygous rabbits without the deletion.