Development and characterization of expressed sequence tags for the turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) genome and comparative sequence analysis with other birds

Combined Use of Molecular Markers and High-Resolution Melting (HRM) to Assess Chromosome Dosage in Potato Hybrids

In plants, the most widely used cytological techniques to assess parental genome contributions are based on in situ hybridization (FISH and GISH), but they are time-consuming and need specific expertise and equipment. Recent advances in genomics and molecular biology have made PCR-based markers a straightforward, affordable technique for chromosome typing. Here, we describe the development of a molecular assay that uses single-copy conserved ortholog set II (COSII)-based single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and the high-resolution melting (HRM) technique to assess the chromosome dosage of interspecific hybrids between a Solanum phureja-S. tuberosum diploid (2n = 2x = 24) hybrid and its wild relative S. commersonii. Screening and analysis of 45 COSII marker sequences allowed S. commersonii-specific SNPs to be identified for all 12 chromosomes. Combining the HRM technique with the establishment of synthetic DNA hybrids, SNP markers were successfully used to predict the expected parental chromosome ratio of 5 interspecific triploid hybrids. These results demonstrate the ability of this strategy to distinguish diverged genomes from each other, and to estimate chromosome dosage. The method could potentially be applied to any species as a tool to assess paternal to maternal ratios in the framework of a breeding program or following transformation techniques.

A novel SNP of the PNRC1 gene and its association with reproductive traits in Tsaiya ducks

Proline-rich nuclear receptor coactivator (PNRC)1 is a member of a new family of nuclear receptor coactivators capable of potentiating the transcriptional activity of nuclear receptors. The objective was to investigate the relationship between PNRC1 genotypes of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and reproductive traits in ducks. Brown Tsaiya ducks (N = 305) from two lines, a control line with no selection and the selected line, were used. Polymerase chain reaction-single strand polymorphism and DNA sequencing were done to screen polymorphisms of the PNRC1 gene. A novel SNP (G98T) in 3'-untranslated region of the PNRC1 gene was identified and resulted in two genotypes, GG and GT. The frequencies of genotype GG and allele G were higher in both lines investigated. Regarding egg weight at first egg (EWFE), based on SNP trait association analysis, ducks with the GG genotype had a 4.48 g per egg greater egg weight at first egg when compared with ducks of the GT genotype in the control line (P < 0.05). In addition, this SNP was associated with the hatchability rate (HR) in the selected line; ducks with the GT genotype had a 6.70% higher hatchability rate than those with the GG genotype (P < 0.05). Therefore, we inferred that the PNRC1 gene could be a candidate locus or linked to a major gene that influenced egg weight-related and hatchability traits in Tsaiya ducks. Further investigations on additional duck populations with larger sample sizes are needed to confirm these results.

Novel genetic markers of the carbonic anhydrase II gene associated with egg production and reproduction traits in Tsaiya ducks

In our previous cDNA microarray study, we found that the carbonic anhydrase II (CA2) gene is one of the differentially expressed transcripts in the duck isthmus epithelium during egg formation period. The aim of this study was to identify the single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the CA2 gene of Tsaiya ducks. The relationship of SNP genotype with egg production and reproduction traits was also investigated. A total of 317 ducks from two lines, a control line with no selection and a selected line, were employed for testing. Three SNPs (C37T, A62G and A65G) in the 3'-untranslated region of the CA2 gene were found. SNP-trait association analysis showed that SNP C37T and A62G were associated with duck egg weight besides fertility. The ducks with the CT and AG genotypes had a 1.46 and 1.62 g/egg lower egg weight as compared with ducks with the CC and AA genotypes, respectively (p < 0.05). But the ducks with CT and AG genotypes had 5.20% and 4.22% higher fertility than those with CC and AA genotypes, respectively (p < 0.05). Diplotype constructed on these three SNPs was associated with duck fertility, and the diplotype H1H4 was dominant for duck fertility. These findings might provide the basis for balanced selection and may be used in marker-assisted selection to improve egg weight and fertility simultaneously in the Tsaiya ducks.

Gallus GBrowse: a unified genomic database for the chicken

Gallus GBrowse (http://birdbase.net/cgi-bin/gbrowse/gallus/) provides online access to genomic and other information about the chicken, Gallus gallus. The information provided by this resource includes predicted genes and Gene Ontology (GO) terms, links to Gallus In Situ Hybridization Analysis (GEISHA), Unigene and Reactome, the genomic positions of chicken genetic markers, SNPs and microarray probes, and mappings from turkey, condor and zebra finch DNA and EST sequences to the chicken genome. We also provide a BLAT server (http://birdbase.net/cgi-bin/webBlat) for matching user-provided sequences to the chicken genome. These tools make the Gallus GBrowse server a valuable resource for researchers seeking genomic information regarding the chicken and other avian species.

Universal markers for comparative mapping and phylogenetic analysis in the Asteraceae (Compositae)

The development of universal markers that can be assayed across taxa, but which are polymorphic within taxa, can facilitate both comparative map-based studies and phylogenetic analyses. Here we describe the development of such markers for use in the Asteraceae, which includes the crops lettuce, sunflower, and safflower as well as dozens of locally important crop and weed species. Using alignments of a conserved orthologous set (COS) of ESTs from lettuce and sunflower and genomic sequences of Arabidopsis, we designed a suite of primer pairs that are conserved across species, but which are predicted to flank introns. We then tested 192 such primer pairs in 8 species from across the family. Of these, 163 produced an amplicon in at least 1 taxon, and 125 amplified in at least half of the taxa surveyed. Thirty-nine amplified in all 8 species. Comparisons amongst sequences within the lettuce and sunflower EST databases indicate that the vast majority of these loci will be polymorphic. As a direct test of the utility of these markers outside the lettuce and sunflower subfamilies, we sequenced a subset of ten loci from a panel of cultivated safflower individuals. All 10 loci proved to be single-locus, and nine of the 10 loci were polymorphic with an average of 12.8 SNPs per kb. Taken together, these loci will provide an initial backbone for comparative genetic analyses within the Asteraceae. Moreover, our results indicate that these loci are phylogenetically informative, and hence can be used to resolve evolutionary relationships between taxa within the family as well as within species.

Molecular evolutionary genomics of birds

Insight into the molecular evolution of birds has been offered by the steady accumulation of avian DNA sequence data, recently culminating in the first draft sequence of an avian genome, that of chicken. By studying avian molecular evolution we can learn about adaptations and phenotypic evolution in birds, and also gain an understanding of the similarities and differences between mammalian and avian genomes. In both these lineages, there is pronounced isochore structure with highly variable GC content. However, while mammalian isochores are decaying, they are maintained in the chicken lineage, which is consistent with a biased gene conversion model where the high and variable recombination rate of birds reinforces heterogeneity in GC. In Galliformes, GC is positively correlated with the rate of nucleotide substitution; the mean neutral mutation rate is 0.12-0.15% at each site per million years but this estimate comes with significant local variation in the rate of mutation. Comparative genomics reveals lower d(N)/d(S) ratios on micro- compared to macrochromosomes, possibly due to population genetic effects or a non-random distribution of genes with respect to chromosome size. A non-random genomic distribution is shown by genes with sex-biased expression, with male-biased genes over-represented and female-biased genes under-represented on the Z chromosome. A strong effect of selection is evident on the non-recombining W chromosome with high d(N)/d(S) ratios and limited polymorphism. Nucleotide diversity in chicken is estimated at 4-5 x 10(-3) which might be seen as surprisingly high given presumed bottlenecks during domestication, but is lower than that recently observed in several natural populations of other species. Several important aspects of the molecular evolutionary process of birds remain to be understood and it can be anticipated that the upcoming genome sequence of a second bird species, the zebra finch, as well as the integration of data on gene expression, shall further advance our knowledge of avian evolution.

DNA sequence and haplotype variation in two candidate genes for dilated cardiomyopathy in the turkey Meleagris gallopavo

Determining variation in genes is fundamental to understanding their function in the disease state. Cardiac troponin T (cTnT) and phospholamban (PLN) genes have been implicated in dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in human and model species. To investigate the role of these 2 candidate genes in DCM in the turkey Meleagris gallopavo, understanding sequence variants and map position distribution is necessary. To this end, a total of 1854 and 1771 bp of cTnT and PLN gene sequences, respectively, were scanned for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in a randomly bred population. A total of 15 SNPs was identified in the cTnT and PLN genomic sequences. Nine haplotypes, 5 in cTnT and 4 in PLN, were identified. Observed heterozygosities (0.02–0.39) in the turkey population were low for both genes. Within each gene, 1 SNP corresponding to a restriction enzyme site was identified and used to develop a PCR–restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) genotyping assay. The PLN gene was genetically mapped to turkey chromosome 2, equivalent to Gallus gallus chromosome 3, and cTnT mapped to a turkey microchromosome. Although limited because of the relatively small sample size of 55 birds, the data from this SNP analysis of PLN and cTnT provide a foundation from which to evaluate the function of cTnT and PLN in the turkey. Information about the distribution of the SNPs and haplotypes will facilitate future association and linkage studies.

Strategies to Assess Structural Variation in the Chicken Genome and its Associations with Biodiversity and Biological Performance

A primary goal in the assessment of structural variation in the avian genome is to understand the relationship of this variation with biodiversity and with biological performance. To develop such knowledge, certain essential tools are needed. One set of tools includes the laboratory techniques used to assess molecular genetic variation. The current time is a transitional one for this field, in that the recently sequenced chicken genome will add significantly to the portfolio of existing methods used to identify molecular markers. To most efficiently discover marker-trait associations, the experimental mapping populations must be appropriately designed and the relevant statistical analyses applied. This paper reviews methods for assessment of molecular markers in poultry and their use in the characterization of avian biodiversity and in studies to identify marker associations with biological traits, including important considerations of population structure and statistical analysis.

Survey of a cDNA library from the turkey (Meleagris gallopavo)

Genome characterization and analysis is an imperative step in identifying and selectively breeding for improved traits of agriculturally important species. Expressed sequence tags (ESTs) represent a transcribed portion of the genome and are an effective way to identify genes within a species. Downstream applications of EST projects include DNA microarray construction and interspecies comparisons. In this study, 694 ESTs were sequenced and analyzed from a library derived from a 24-day-old turkey embryo. The 437 unique sequences identified were divided into 76 assembled contigs and 361 singletons. The majority of significant comparative matches occurred between the turkey sequences and sequences reported from the chicken. Whole genome sequence from the chicken was used to identify potential exon–intron boundaries for selected turkey clones and intron-amplifying primers were developed for sequence analysis and single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) discovery. Identified SNPs were genotyped for linkage analysis on two turkey reference populations. This study significantly increases the number of EST sequences available for the turkey.Key words: turkey, cDNA, expressed sequence tag, single nucleotide polymorphism.

Expressed sequence tags for the chicken genome from a normalized 10-day-old white leghorn whole-embryo cDNA library. 3. DNA sequence analysis of genetic variation in commercial chicken populations

Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) have emerged as a major class of DNA markers with the advantage of permitting the development of high-density genetic maps adequate for quantitative trait loci (QTL) identification by linkage-disequilibrium analysis. Here we describe results of a relatively high-depth survey of chicken broiler and layer populations for SNPs in targeted genomic regions of chicken expressed sequence tag (EST) sites. The sequences scanned, representing the composite sequence of 12 amplified fragments for a total of 6489 bp, were randomly distributed, occurring on six different chromosomes or linkage groups in the chicken genome. Although one of the genomic DNA sequences did not match the reference cDNA sequence, another contained an intron that separated two putative exons. The number of SNPs observed within each of the 12 EST-targeted genomic regions ranged from 0 to 10 for a total of 44 and a frequency of 0.7%. About 70% of the polymorphisms were shared between layer and broiler populations. The average heterozygosity within the populations ranged from 0.15 to 0.48, with the layer populations showing the higher heterozygosity. SNPs and oligonucleotides described will provide a resource for genetic analysis in commercial chicken populations. The data appear to indicate that the relative frequency of SNPs in the targeted regions scanned is higher than the frequency reported for any of the other regions scanned to date in other eukaryotic genomes. Additionally, the results suggest that the use of DNA pools may offer an efficient approach to SNP detection in chickens, as has been shown in other vertebrates.

Expressed sequence tags for the chicken genome from a normalized, ten-day-old white leghorn whole embryo cDNA library. 2. Comparative DNA sequence analysis of guinea fowl, quail, and turkey genomes

Accelerated efforts to develop a high-utility chicken genome map have resulted in the development of resources that may be useful for genetic analysis in other economically important poultry species. Here we describe a total of 26 comparative genomic DNA sequences (CGS) for the guinea fowl, Japanese quail, and domestic turkey developed using 10 primer pairs specific for 10 previously reported, unique, chicken expressed sequence tags (EST). The total length of CGS developed for each of the three species was 4,193, 4,597, and 6,057 bp in quail, turkey, and guinea fowl, respectively. About 70% of the CGS showed significant sequence similarity to reference database sequences, including the reference chicken EST and other avian and nonavian genes. A majority of the between-species comparisons of the CGS from all but two primer pairs were significant and ranged from 81 to 99%. The percentage similarity of the CGS appears to be a function of phylogenetic relatedness and was generally higher for comparisons between the chicken, quail, and turkey and lower between the guinea fowl and chicken, quail, or turkey. Maximum likelihood estimation of the phylogenetic relationships using CGS from two primer pairs also showed a closer relationship, as expected, among chicken, quail, and turkey than between guinea fowl and either chicken, quail, or turkey. Within the guinea fowl, quail, and turkey CGS developed, the total number of single nucleotide polymorphisms detected was 28, 17, and 14, respectively. Together, these resources represent tools that will facilitate genetic analysis of species that have been studied very little and our understanding of their genomes and genome evolution.