Jingya Li , Mengyue Chen

Animal Science Research Center, Cuixi Academy of Biotechnology, Zhuji, 311800, Zhejiang, China
Author    Correspondence author
International Journal of Molecular Zoology, 2025, Vol. 15, No. 1   doi: 10.5376/ijmz.2025.15.0003
Received: 20 Dec., 2024    Accepted: 26 Jan., 2025    Published: 09 Feb., 2025

This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Li J.Y., and Chen M.Y., 2025, Advances in the genetic regulation of feather coloration in domestic geese: from candidate genes to functional genomics, International Journal of Molecular Zoology, 15(1): 20-28 (doi: 10.5376/ijmz.2025.15.0003)

In recent years, with the development of molecular biology and omics techniques, significant progress has been made in the research on the genetic regulation of feather color in domestic geese. This study describes the main candidate genes that affect feather color variation in geese, such as  KIT, EDNRB2, TYRP1 , etc., summarizes the functional mechanisms of these genes in processes such as pigment cell development, melanin synthesis and transport, and highlights the potential role of non-coding RNAs, regulatory elements and environmental factors in feather color formation. The application prospects of technologies such as transcriptome, genomic association analysis and CRISPR in the genetic research of goose feather color were also discussed. This study aims to sort out the genetic basis and regulatory network of feather color formation in domestic geese, and provide theoretical support for molecular breeding, breed selection and resource conservation of poultry appearance traits.

Feather coloration; Domestic geese; Melanogenesis genes; Multi-omics analysis; Gene editing