Leptin: A biomolecule for enhancing livestock productivity

Abstract

Livestock play a significant role by providing food security as well as income resource for less poor people in our country. It is necessary to enhance and sustain the production efficiency of livestock species in the changing face of population scenario to feed a large growing population. Therefore, it is important to adopt different strategies to increase productive efficiency of livestock. Leptin is one of the most useful biomolecule to act as a marker for identifying high performing individuals leading to better adaptability and productivity. Leptin has a pleiotropic effect on regulating apetite, energy metabolism, growth, reproduction, body composition and immunity. It is mostly produced in the white adipose tissue and informs the central nervous system (CNS) about the total fat depot of the body. Leptin is also involved in regulation of nutritional status and reproductive function and also regulates fetal development in livestock. Plasma leptin level increases linearly with increases in body fat mass. Leptin reduces feed intake in rodents, ruminant and other livestock species and also plays a role in energy expenditure. The physiological properties support leptin as a strong candidate gene for evaluation of genetic polymorphisms, which has further been associated with growth, milk yield and other economic traits in different livestock. The present review deals with the leptin structure and its implications in regulation of growth, reproduction, immunity and also enhancing livestock productivity.