Cornish Rex CoatQuick Summary
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Phenotype: Cornish Rex cats have short, soft, curly coats.
Mode of Inheritance: Autosomal recessive
Alleles: N = Normal coat, CR = Cornish Rex coat
Breeds appropriate for testing: Cornish Rex
Explanation of Results:
- Cats with N/N genotype will have normal coats and cannot transmit this Cornish Rex coat variant to their offspring.
- Cats with N/CR genotype will have normal coats and are carriers of this Cornish Rex coat variant. Matings between two carriers are predicted to produce 25% of kittens with Cornish Rex coats.
- Cats with CR/CR genotype will have a Cornish Rex coat and will transmit this Cornish Rex coat variant to all of their offspring. Matings with other CR/CR genotype cats are expected to produce all Cornish Rex coated kittens.
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.
The Cornish Rex breed of cat is characterized by a soft curly coat. The Lyons Feline Genetics Research Laboratory at University of California, Davis identified a 4 bp deletion (c.250-253 delTTTG) in lysophosphatidic acid receptor 6 (LPAR6). The mutation, inherited in an autosomal recessive fashion, affects the function of a gene crucial for hair formation and maintenance and is fixed in Cornish and also found in German Rex cats.
Testing for the Cornish Rex curly coat mutation in Cornish Rex cats can assist breeders in confirming breed affiliation as they are fixed for the variant. Test results can also be used in outcrossing programs, to help breeders select the carrier cats that could produce curly coat in the next generation.