Correlation of protein electrophoretic pattern with morphology of normal and mutant feathers

Differences are demonstrated in electrophoretic patterns of SCM proteins extracted from the shaft and vane between the plumulaceous and pennaceous portions of normal feathers. Supportive evidence for these differences is given by scanning electron micrographs. In various mutant feathers, the observed structural and electrophoretic differences were due to the distribution of plumulaceous and pennaceous parts, not to new proteins. Feather mutants appear to be due to regulatory gene changes rather than to structural gene products.Supported by NSF Grant BO-20086.