#salmiak

[felinefractious]

[Image Source: Messybeast]

A New Finnish Flavor of Feline Coat Coloration, “Salmiak,” is Associated With a 95-kb Deletion Downstream of the KIT Gene

Cats with a distinctive white hair pattern of unknown molecular cause have been discovered in the Finnish domestic cat population. Based on the unique appearance of these cats, we have named this phenotype salmiak (“salty licorice”). The use of a commercially available panel test to genotype four salmiak-colored cats revealed the absence of all known variants associated with white-haired phenotypic loci: full White (W), Spotting (Ws) and the Birman white Gloves associated (wg) allele of the KIT proto-oncogene (KIT) gene. Whole-genome sequencing on two salmiak-colored cats was conducted to search for candidate causal variants in the KIT gene. Despite a lack of coding variants, visual inspection of the short read alignments revealed a large ~95 kb deletion located ~65 kb downstream of the KIT gene in the salmiak cats. Additional PCR genotyping of 180 domestic cats and three salmiak-colored cats confirmed the homozygous derived variant genotype fully concordant with the salmiak phenotype. We suggest the newly identified variant be designated as wsal for “w salmiak”.

[Read Full Study]

[amber-tortoiseshell]

Welcome to my latest project, in which i combined the figures from the articles first describing them to make an illustration of the KIT alleles and their relative positions on the gene.

From left to right:

- W and ws: these alleles are both insertions of different length into the same position (somewhere close to the beginning of the first intron). This means they are exactly the same locus, and no chromosome can carry both alleles at the same time. (I mean it could have both insertions, one after the other, but that would be a different allele again.)

- wg: a two base mutation in the sixth exon. Theoretically a single chromosome could carry both this and one of previous mutations. (Meaning that basically the cat could have three different alleles.)

- wsal: strictly speaking not located on KIT, only next to it: it's a long deletion downstream of KIT. If crossing over happens on the 66 kb long DNA sequence between KIT and this deletion, it's possible to have a chromosome to carry salmiak and another variant.

[roseate-felidae]

Learning new cat colour genetics. Carnelian, kaparti, phoenix, caramel/apricot and pink eyed dilution.

Basically, I learnt most of the genetics of cats and some rodents from a book called the Colour Inheritance in Small Livestock by Roy Robinson. Printed 2013.

But new genes has since been discovered, part 3

Carnelian (kopal, serdolik)- kurilian bobtail

What is it- starts out reddish, then turns pure red with dark tail tip with age (no dark hairs, except tail tip).

Genetics- co-dominant extension gene, ec (sometimes es). In single is golden, in double is Carnelian.

Notes-

Single tabby with Inhibitor gene looks like bimetallic (single self with I is normal smoke)

Single with wideband gene is brownish golden with dorsoventral paleness.

With self colourpoint is taupe points

Kaparti- laperm, lykoi, randonbred cats in carpathians, Transylvanian breed.

What is it- start light and grizzled with white points. With age is almost black, with white points. Sometimes have black face.

Genetics- dominant,

Notes-

Type of roan

Tempreture based points

With colourpoint- is powdery points

Salmiak- randonbred

What is it- originally called Finnish mutation, it causes a roan effect, with a black head and white spots.

Genetics- KIT gene (white mutation). Recessive

Notes-

Found in Finland and Hungary in randonbred cats

Actualy discovered in 2007, despite the gene being discovered as a KIT mutation in a study only recently.

Named for the Finnish salted Liquorice, which its pattern resembles

Originally thought to be a variant of homogenous Kaparti

Phoenix/pseudo cinnamon- Maine coons

What is it- turns red cats into mahogany

Genetics- dominant.

Notes-

Born golden with blue paws and tail

Changes pads colour and brighter eyes

Opposite to extension gene

In self cats the tabby markings are visible as mahogany on bluish background.

Caramel/apricot- Oriental shorthair, Siamese, Balinese, Oriental Longhairs, Tonkinese, Burmese, Birman and British Shorthair/Longhair

What is it- transforms dilute colours - blue, lilac, fawn, cream - into caramel (in black-based colours) and apricot (in cream cats)

Genetics- Dilute modifier gene (Dm). Dominant in dilute cats. Masked in dense.

Notes-

Have metallic sheen on them.

Doesn't effect dense colours (black, choc, cinnamon, red).

Blue caramel is sometimes called just caramel and cinnamon caramel is sometimes called Taupe.

Pink eyed dilution in cats- two accounts in domestic (both female). In Donskoy (Milkdud)

What is it- It changed black to a fawn/bluish-tan colour and the eyes had a red pupil and gold flecked red/pink irides (iris)

Genetics- recessive, modification of eumelanin. "oculocutaneous albinism with the identification of a splice-site variant in Hermansky–Pudlak Syndrome 5 gene”

Notes-

"Black cat hair (non-agouti) contains numerous small dark brown to black melanin granules uniformly distributed throughout all portions from base to tip of the hair.

Smoke cat hair (non-agouti + inhibitor (silver) gene) has a scarcity of melanin granules at the base of the hair.

Blue cat hair (non-agouti + dilution) has larger basic melanin granules, but still relatively regularly shaped, and a non-uniform distribution of granules.

Chediak-Higashi Smoke cat hair trait has even larger melanin granules than the blue dilution, and they are relatively irregularly shaped. All of the cats were Persian and resembled blue smoke Persians.

The pink-eyed dilute cat hair had very small yellowish-brown melanin granules and very few larger granules. Under the microscope, some lighter banding could be seen on the hairs, but the tip was coloured. The base of the hair was paler than the tip (agouti banding)."

Is not c gene. Like albino

She was a blotched tabby (dominant) with moderate white spotting (dominant) and had a slight kink at the tip of her tail.

Was called flavism and Ukraine chocolate in Donskoy once

Has irregular heats

Has no tapetum lucidum and poor vision

Similar gene as pink-eye mouse and non-syndromic oculocutaneous albinism (OCA) in humans

[cheesebongdynasty]

The Salty Licorice Cat

[morethansalad]

Vegan Salted Liquorice (Salmiak) Panna Cotta

[podcastgemist]

#131 - JACK&JOZEF - In het industriegebied

[missroserose]

Also appropriate, as salmiak is specifically licorice covered in ammonia salt, and ammonia is what makes cat pee stink so badly 😂

CHAT THEY DISCOVERED A NEW COAT TYPE IN CATS

IT'S CALLED "SALMIAK" OR "SALTY LICORICE" AND IT LOOKS LIKE THIS

[geezerwench]

A New Cat Color Is Defying Genetic Expectations

[actualmichelle]

new cat just dropped!

[foundfamilyhq]

[amber-tortoiseshell]

This is very interesting, and i'm happy to learn about it, but i want to add that there's another bit in the cited article that's very easy to misunderstand: "[the blotched] pattern, which is in 80 per cent of present-day cats".

According to wikipedia (citing this article i'm unable to access unfortunately), "80% of modern-day cats have the recessive allele responsible for the classic pattern". This is a little more clear - the 80 percent includes not only cats with the blotched phenotype, but everyone who carries at least one copy of the allele.

So to calculate allele frequencies (P(mackerel) = p, P(blotched) = q):

p² = 0.2 -> p ≈ 0.45 -> q ≈ 0.55 (which would mean the blotched allele is more common than the mackerel, still a little hard to believe for me, but let's roll with it) -> q² ≈ 0.3

This gives us 30% blotched, but without considering all the epistatic genes: spotted, ticked, agouti and dominant white. The actual percentage would be lower.

A new cat color has been spotted in Finland. This is really interesting. A lot of common cat coat patterns have only evolved in the last 1,000 years. The tabby cat coloration only evolved in the Middle Ages.

[grubscouts]

Working redesigns for the duskshore cove cast, first up: Kris!

This isn’t my final idea I’m just spitballing

she’s a Salmiak cat w/ a depigmentation condition

[redsasexualdisaster]

its midnight again and that means its cat time [ the meowtekh dynasty and the twice dead kitties]

[flipchild]

salmiak yummy

[pixelated-katt]

who up salting their cat