MaGelLAn 1.0: a software to facilitate quantitative and population genetic analysis of maternal inheritance by combination of molecular and pedigree information

The Consequences of Mitochondrial T10432C Mutation in Cika Cattle: A “Potential” Model for Leber’s Hereditary Optic Neuropathy

While mitogenome mutations leading to pathological manifestations are rare, more than 200 such mutations have been described in humans. In contrast, pathogenic mitogenome mutations are rare in domestic animals and have not been described at all in cattle. In the small local Slovenian cattle breed Cika, we identified (next-generation sequencing) two cows with the T10432C mitogenome mutation in the ND4L gene, which corresponds to the human T10663C mutation known to cause Leber’s hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON). Pedigree analysis revealed that the cows in which the mutation was identified belong to two different maternal lineages with 217 individual cows born between 1997 and 2020. The identified mutation and its maternal inheritance were confirmed by Sanger sequencing across multiple generations, whereas no single analysis revealed evidence of heteroplasmy. A closer clinical examination of one cow with the T10432C mutation revealed exophthalmos, whereas histopathological examination revealed retinal ablations, subretinal oedema, and haemorrhage. The results of these analyses confirm the presence of mitochondrial mutation T10432C with homoplasmic maternal inheritance as well as clinical and histopathological signs similar to LHON in humans. Live animals with the mutation could be used as a suitable animal model that can improve our understanding of the pathogenesis of LHON and other mitochondriopathies.

Analysis of the impact of cytoplasmic and mitochondrial inheritance on litter size and carcass in rabbits

<p>The effects of mitogenome variation on economically important traits have been reported in a number of domestic animal species. In this study, the first of its kind on rabbits, we have performed the estimation of the contribution of cytoplasmic and D-loop mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence effects on the litter size and carcass traits in three Pannon rabbit breeds (Pannon Ka, Pannon Large and Pannon White). The observed effects of both estimates, coming from cytoplasmic or D-loop mtDNA variation, were negligible. The most likely explanation for the results obtained is the lack of mitogenome polymorphism in all three populations, as suggested from the analysis performed on the D-loop mtDNA sequence, here assigned to the two most frequent rabbit haplotypes. The extent of potential benefits of the introduction, or alteration, of mitogenome variation in rabbit breeding remains an open question for future research.</p>