Genetic mutation responsible for new coat pattern in cats in Finland identified

A team of geneticists and animal welfare specialists from Britain and one from the US have identified the genetic mutation responsible for a newly discovered cat coat color pattern in Finland. In their research, published in the journal Animal geneticsthe group sequenced the genomes of two of the cats.

In 2007, people in Finland noticed that some wild cats had strikingly colored fur. Instead of what would be a typical tuxedo pattern, the cats had hair that was black at the base and became increasingly white towards the tip. The pattern soon became known as the “Finnish mutation” as some were adopted and brought into the home. In this new study, the research team examined the genetic mutation responsible for the change.

The researchers gave the new coat pattern an official name: they called it sal ammoniac, after a popular Finnish liquorice species. They then announced that they were looking for cats with the new coat pattern and asked for volunteers to bring them in for testing.

Initial testing of the cats returned negative for mutations known to affect white coat color. That led the team to sequence the entire genome of two of the cats. They found a mutation at a site near the KIT gene that was previously associated with distinct white hair patterns in domestic cats. They also noticed that some of the sequence was missing downstream.

The research group then verified that they had found the variant they were looking for: they looked for it in 181 cats and found it in three of them with the salmiak coat. All three had also inherited it from both their parents. They also found three other cats that had the variant, but not the salmiak coat; they had inherited the mutation from only one parent.

The research team suggests they have identified the recessive mutation responsible for the development of the new, unique coat pattern.