Efficiency of leptin gene polymorphisms in the evaluation of the growth performance and carcass measurements of v-line and Baladi black rabbits

Abstract

This study investigated the association between both polymorphisms and metabolic marker changes of the leptin gene, and body weight, weight gain, carcass traits, feed intake, and feed conversion ratio. Blood samples were collected from 60 V-line and 60 Baladi Black rabbits for DNA extraction and biochemical analysis. DNA sequencing of leptin (202-bp) revealed four non-synonymous single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) that characterized a number of V-line rabbits. Statistical analysis revealed that the identified SNPs were associated with rabbit growth and carcass measurements (p < 0.05). A discriminant analysis model showed a high classification percentage for the identified SNPs within and between breeds using body weight at 5-14 weeks of age (91.7%), slaughter traits (91.6%), feed intake, daily feed intake, and feed conversion ratio (76.7%). This study reveals that leptin gene could be a candidate for growth traits in rabbits enabling the development of marker-assisted selection (MAS) in different rabbit breeds.