Japan Team Finds Gene Determining Calico Cat Color Patterns

   Tokyo, May 16 (Jiji Press)--A Japanese research team led by Kyushu University professor Hiroyuki Sasaki has said it discovered a gene that determines the color patterns of the tricolored calico cat, known in Japan as "mike neko."
   The team found that the coloring was decided by the ARHGAP36 gene on the X chromosome. The orange coloration reflects a missing portion of this gene, while the black fur color is due to the absence of such a deletion, the team said.
   The team's findings were published in the online edition of the U.S. journal Current Biology on Thursday.
   It was established some 120 years ago that almost all calico cats are female and that the color-deciding factor was in the X chromosomes. About 60 years later, researchers discovered that one of the two X chromosomes is inactivated in calico cats.
   But the gene responsible for the distinct coloration long remained unidentified.

(2025/05/16-08:10)