The novel candidate genes related to live weight trait in southern meat sheep breed revealed by genome-wide genotyping

Abstract

The study of the local sheep breeds’ genetic architecture is an important step on the way to preserve their gene pool. The aim of our work was to identify candidate genes associated with the live weight trait in adult southern meat breed sheep. This breed has high productivity, but is under threat of a critical decrease in genetic diversity due to a small number. The live weight of farm animals is one of the key breeding indicators. This quantitative trait is polygenic and breed specific as it has been shown by a number of authors. Animals were genotyped on the Illumina Ovine SNP50 Genotyping Bead Chip assay using standard procedures. Results in quality control, statistics and visualization were carried out in Rstudio 2023.03.0 and plink1.9. Genotyped animals were divided into two groups according to the case/control principle with differences in live weight between representatives of groups of 25–30 kg. Significant genetic variants were determined by the fixation indices method. Further analysis of significant variants (in intron positions) was performed in Ensembl genomic browser and revealed candidate genes localized in chromosomes 5, 6, 12, 20. The statistical analysis of live mass showed significant differences of the studied trait in different genotypes on four genes. The candidate genes identified can be recommended for using as genetic markers, their study could improve the productivity of southern meat sheep breed and help to preserve its gene pool.