14 citations
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May 2022 in “Animals” Female goslings have darker feathers than males due to more melanin.
3 citations
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October 2022 in “PloS one” Scientists have developed a method to keep chicken feather follicles alive and structurally intact in a lab for up to a week.
May 2022 in “Indian Journal of Animal Research” Melatonin receptor genes likely play an important role in the development of goose feather follicles.
10 citations
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August 2023 in “Animals” This study investigates the genetic mechanisms behind melanin deposition in chicken feathers by analyzing feather follicle tissues from chickens with different feather colors. Transcriptome analysis identified several key genes, including SLC45A2 and GPNMB, which were consistently expressed in both neck and wing tissues across different plumage colors. Enrichment analyses revealed that differentially expressed genes were involved in melanin-related pathways, such as the tyrosine metabolic pathway and melanogenesis. Further experiments confirmed that SLC45A2 and GPNMB promote melanin deposition in chicken melanocytes, enhancing our understanding of the genetic regulation of chicken feather color.
66 citations
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July 2015 in “Journal of Molecular Biology” The document concludes that for hair and feather growth, it's better to target the environment around stem cells than the cells themselves.