Agouti
The Agouti gene produces a protein that regulates the distribution of black pigment (eumelanin) within the hair shaft. The wild type allele A is dominant and produces hair shafts with alternating bands of yellow and black colour, ending with black tips (similar to the coat of a wild mouse or rabbit). The recessive allele a produces a cat that is self-coloured (solid) when 2 copies of a are present. Another system of pigmentation in cats produces the tabby patterns of dark stripes interspersed with the lighter agouti tipped hairs. Hairs in the darker stripes do not have the shift between black and yellow pigment production and remain uniformly dark. The effect of the agouti protein on orange pigment is limited, thus tabby striping may still be seen on cats that are a/a for agouti.
Requirements
The tests are performed out of EDTA whole blood (0.5 ml) or cotton swabs. These cotton swabs are available upon request. Testing is performed a few times per week at Laboklin. The results are due about one week after arrival of the sample in our laboratory.
