Association of the porcine C3 gene with haemolytic complement activity in the pig

The complement component C3 plays an essential role in the activated complement system, which is involved in phagocytosis, inflammation and immunoregulation to destroy infectious microorganisms. The C3 molecule has more implications in the general defence mechanisms. In this study, the porcine C3 cDNA sequences including 5'- and 3'- flanking regions were determined and the polymorphisms in this gene were identified to carry out an association analysis between C3 and complement activity traits. Porcine C3 gene has high homology with human C3. Five single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and one microsatellite were detected in the porcine C3 gene. Haemolytic complement activity of alternative and classical pathways (ACH, CCP) was measured in 416 F2 animals of a crossbred of Duroc x Berlin Miniature Pig, which were immunized with Mycoplasma, Aujeszky and PRRS vaccines. C3 markers were found to be significantly associated (P <0.05) with both ACP and CCP. Animals with the more frequent haplotype present in Duroc and other commercial breeds exhibit higher ACP and CCP levels than the animals with haplotype specific to some Berlin Miniature Pigs. The association of C3 with complement activity reinforces the importance of C3 as a candidate gene for natural resistance to microorganisms.