Genome-wide association study of four composite reproductive traits in Iranian fat-tailed sheep
R. Abdoli
A , S. Z. Mirhoseini A E , N. Ghavi Hossein-Zadeh A , P. Zamani B , M. H. Ferdosi C and C. Gondro D
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Guilan, Rasht 41635-1314, Iran.
B Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamedan 65178-33131, Iran.
C Animal Genetics and Breeding Unit (AGBU), University of New England, Armidale, NSW 2351, Australia.
D Department of Animal Science, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA.
E Corresponding author. Email: szmirhoseini@gmail.com; mirhosin@guilan.ac.ir
Reproduction, Fertility and Development 31(6) 1127-1133 https://doi.org/10.1071/RD18282
Submitted: 4 August 2018 Accepted: 27 January 2019 Published: 9 April 2019
Abstract
Composite reproductive traits are a combination of growth and reproductive traits. They have the advantage of being better attuned to the market drivers since producers are paid on a per kilogram basis and not on a per head basis. In this study, 124 Lori–Bakhtiari ewes were genotyped using the medium-density Illumina Ovine SNP50 array. A genome-wide association study was performed on estimated breeding values of four composite reproductive traits and genetic parameters were also estimated. The traits were litter mean weight at birth, litter mean weight at weaning, total litter weight at birth and total litter weight at weaning. Several suggestive and associated single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified. Neighbouring the top SNPs there were five genes, inhibin β E subunit (INHBE), inhibin β C subunit (INHBC), testis expressed 12 (TEX12), β-carotene oxygenase 2 (BCO2) and WD Repeat Domain 70 (WDR70) identified as possible candidate genes for composite reproductive traits of the Lori–Bakhtiari sheep. These genes are in pathways known to be relevant to fertility and growth characteristics. The results provide new information for the functional annotation of genes associated with fertility traits and add new evidence towards a consensus of quantitative trait loci associated with reproductive traits in sheep.
Additional keywords: candidate genes, ewe productivity, fertility, sheep GWAS.
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