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Forutan M, Engle BN, Chamberlain AJ, Ross EM, Nguyen LT, D'Occhio MJ, Snr AC, Kho EA, Fordyce G, Speight S, Goddard ME, Hayes BJ. Genome-wide association and expression quantitative trait loci in cattle reveals common genes regulating mammalian fertility. Commun Biol 2024; 7:724. [PMID: 38866948 PMCID: PMC11169601 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-024-06403-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2023] [Accepted: 05/31/2024] [Indexed: 06/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Most genetic variants associated with fertility in mammals fall in non-coding regions of the genome and it is unclear how these variants affect fertility. Here we use genome-wide association summary statistics for Heifer puberty (pubertal or not at 600 days) from 27,707 Bos indicus, Bos taurus and crossbred cattle; multi-trait GWAS signals from 2119 indicine cattle for four fertility traits, including days to calving, age at first calving, pregnancy status, and foetus age in weeks (assessed by rectal palpation of the foetus); and expression quantitative trait locus for whole blood from 489 indicine cattle, to identify 87 putatively functional genes affecting cattle fertility. Our analysis reveals a significant overlap between the set of cattle and previously reported human fertility-related genes, impling the existence of a shared pool of genes that regulate fertility in mammals. These findings are crucial for developing approaches to improve fertility in cattle and potentially other mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mehrnush Forutan
- Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia.
| | - Bailey N Engle
- Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
- USDA,ARS, U.S. Meat Animal Research Center, Clay Center, NE, 68933, USA
| | - Amanda J Chamberlain
- Agriculture Victoria, Centre for AgriBiosciences, Bundoora, VIC, Australia
- School of Applied Systems Biology, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC, 3083, Australia
| | - Elizabeth M Ross
- Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
| | - Loan T Nguyen
- Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
| | - Michael J D'Occhio
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Alf Collins Snr
- Collins Belah Valley Brahman Stud, Marlborough, 4705, QLD, Australia
| | - Elise A Kho
- Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
| | - Geoffry Fordyce
- Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
| | | | - Michael E Goddard
- Agriculture Victoria, Centre for AgriBiosciences, Bundoora, VIC, Australia
- University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Ben J Hayes
- Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
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Jin M, Wang H, Liu G, Lu J, Yuan Z, Li T, Liu E, Lu Z, Du L, Wei C. Whole-genome resequencing of Chinese indigenous sheep provides insight into the genetic basis underlying climate adaptation. Genet Sel Evol 2024; 56:26. [PMID: 38565986 PMCID: PMC10988870 DOI: 10.1186/s12711-024-00880-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2023] [Accepted: 01/31/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Chinese indigenous sheep are valuable resources with unique features and characteristics. They are distributed across regions with different climates in mainland China; however, few reports have analyzed the environmental adaptability of sheep based on their genome. We examined the variants and signatures of selection involved in adaptation to extreme humidity, altitude, and temperature conditions in 173 sheep genomes from 41 phenotypically and geographically representative Chinese indigenous sheep breeds to characterize the genetic basis underlying environmental adaptation in these populations. RESULTS Based on the analysis of population structure, we inferred that Chinese indigenous sheep are divided into four groups: Kazakh (KAZ), Mongolian (MON), Tibetan (TIB), and Yunnan (YUN). We also detected a set of candidate genes that are relevant to adaptation to extreme environmental conditions, such as drought-prone regions (TBXT, TG, and HOXA1), high-altitude regions (DYSF, EPAS1, JAZF1, PDGFD, and NF1) and warm-temperature regions (TSHR, ABCD4, and TEX11). Among all these candidate genes, eight ABCD4, CNTN4, DOCK10, LOC105608545, LOC121816479, SEM3A, SVIL, and TSHR overlap between extreme environmental conditions. The TSHR gene shows a strong signature for positive selection in the warm-temperature group and harbors a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) missense mutation located between positions 90,600,001 and 90,650,001 on chromosome 7, which leads to a change in the protein structure of TSHR and influences its stability. CONCLUSIONS Analysis of the signatures of selection uncovered genes that are likely related to environmental adaptation and a SNP missense mutation in the TSHR gene that affects the protein structure and stability. It also provides information on the evolution of the phylogeographic structure of Chinese indigenous sheep populations. These results provide important genetic resources for future breeding studies and new perspectives on how animals can adapt to climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meilin Jin
- Institute of Animal Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Huihua Wang
- Institute of Animal Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Gang Liu
- National Animal Husbandry Service, National Center of Preservation and Utilization of Animal Genetic Resources, Beijing, China
| | - Jian Lu
- National Animal Husbandry Service, National Center of Preservation and Utilization of Animal Genetic Resources, Beijing, China
| | - Zehu Yuan
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China
| | - Taotao Li
- Institute of Animal Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Engming Liu
- Institute of Animal Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Zengkui Lu
- Lanzhou Institute of Husbandry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lan-Zhou, China
| | - Lixin Du
- Institute of Animal Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China.
| | - Caihong Wei
- Institute of Animal Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China.
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Ward JA, Ng'ang'a SI, Randhawa IAS, McHugo GP, O'Grady JF, Flórez JM, Browne JA, Pérez O’Brien AM, Landaeta-Hernández AJ, Garcia JF, Sonstegard TS, Frantz LAF, Salter-Townshend M, MacHugh DE. Genomic insights into the population history and adaptive traits of Latin American Criollo cattle. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2024; 11:231388. [PMID: 38571912 PMCID: PMC10990470 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.231388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2023] [Revised: 01/04/2024] [Accepted: 01/31/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024]
Abstract
Criollo cattle, the descendants of animals brought by Iberian colonists to the Americas, have been the subject of natural and human-mediated selection in novel tropical agroecological zones for centuries. Consequently, these breeds have evolved distinct characteristics such as resistance to diseases and exceptional heat tolerance. In addition to European taurine (Bos taurus) ancestry, it has been proposed that gene flow from African taurine and Asian indicine (Bos indicus) cattle has shaped the ancestry of Criollo cattle. In this study, we analysed Criollo breeds from Colombia and Venezuela using whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array data to examine population structure and admixture at high resolution. Analysis of genetic structure and ancestry components provided evidence for African taurine and Asian indicine admixture in Criollo cattle. In addition, using WGS data, we detected selection signatures associated with a myriad of adaptive traits, revealing genes linked to thermotolerance, reproduction, fertility, immunity and distinct coat and skin coloration traits. This study underscores the remarkable adaptability of Criollo cattle and highlights the genetic richness and potential of these breeds in the face of climate change, habitat flux and disease challenges. Further research is warranted to leverage these findings for more effective and sustainable cattle breeding programmes.
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Affiliation(s)
- James A. Ward
- Animal Genomics Laboratory, School of Agriculture and Food Science, University College Dublin, DublinD04 V1W8, Ireland
| | - Said I. Ng'ang'a
- Palaeogenomics Group, Department of Veterinary Sciences, Ludwig Maximilian University, MunichD-80539, Germany
- School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, LondonE1 4NS, UK
| | | | - Gillian P. McHugo
- Animal Genomics Laboratory, School of Agriculture and Food Science, University College Dublin, DublinD04 V1W8, Ireland
| | - John F. O'Grady
- Animal Genomics Laboratory, School of Agriculture and Food Science, University College Dublin, DublinD04 V1W8, Ireland
| | - Julio M. Flórez
- Acceligen, Eagan, MN55121, USA
- Department of Preventive Veterinary Medicine and Animal Reproduction, School of Agricultural and Veterinarian Sciences, São Paulo State University (Unesp), Jaboticabal, Brazil
| | - John A. Browne
- Animal Genomics Laboratory, School of Agriculture and Food Science, University College Dublin, DublinD04 V1W8, Ireland
| | | | - Antonio J. Landaeta-Hernández
- Unidad de Investigaciones Zootécnicas, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad del Zulia, Maracaibo, Venezuela
| | - Jóse F. Garcia
- Department of Preventive Veterinary Medicine and Animal Reproduction, School of Agricultural and Veterinarian Sciences, São Paulo State University (Unesp), Jaboticabal, Brazil
| | | | - Laurent A. F. Frantz
- Palaeogenomics Group, Department of Veterinary Sciences, Ludwig Maximilian University, MunichD-80539, Germany
- School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, LondonE1 4NS, UK
| | | | - David E. MacHugh
- Animal Genomics Laboratory, School of Agriculture and Food Science, University College Dublin, DublinD04 V1W8, Ireland
- Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, DublinD04 V1W8, Ireland
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Ben-Jemaa S, Adam G, Boussaha M, Bardou P, Klopp C, Mandonnet N, Naves M. Whole genome sequencing reveals signals of adaptive admixture in Creole cattle. Sci Rep 2023; 13:12155. [PMID: 37500674 PMCID: PMC10374910 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-38774-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2023] [Accepted: 07/14/2023] [Indexed: 07/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The Creole cattle from Guadeloupe (GUA) are well adapted to the tropical environment. Its admixed genome likely played an important role in such adaptation. Here, we sought to detect genomic signatures of selection in the GUA genome. For this purpose, we sequenced 23 GUA individuals and combined our data with sequenced genomes of 99 animals representative of European, African and indicine groups. We detect 17,228,983 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the GUA genome, providing the most detailed exploration, to date, of patterns of genetic variation in this breed. We confirm the higher level of African and indicine ancestries, compared to the European ancestry and we highlight the African origin of indicine ancestry in the GUA genome. We identify five strong candidate regions showing an excess of indicine ancestry and consistently supported across the different detection methods. These regions encompass genes with adaptive roles in relation to immunity, thermotolerance and physical activity. We confirmed a previously identified horn-related gene, RXFP2, as a gene under strong selective pressure in the GUA population likely owing to human-driven (socio-cultural) pressure. Findings from this study provide insight into the genetic mechanisms associated with resilience traits in livestock.
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Affiliation(s)
- Slim Ben-Jemaa
- INRAE, ASSET, 97170, Petit-Bourg, France.
- Laboratoire des Productions Animales et Fourragères, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique de Tunisie, Université de Carthage, 2049, Ariana, Tunisia.
| | | | - Mekki Boussaha
- AgroParisTech, GABI, INRAE, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Philippe Bardou
- GenPhySE, Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse (ENVT), INRA, Université de Toulouse, 24 Chemin de Borde Rouge, 31320, Castanet-Tolosan, France
- Sigenae, INRAE, 24 Chemin de Borde Rouge, 31320, Castanet-Tolosan, France
| | - Christophe Klopp
- Genotoul Bioinfo, BioInfoMics, MIAT UR875, Sigenae, INRAE, Castanet-Tolosan, France
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Tan WLA, Neto LRP, Reverter A, McGowan M, Fortes MRS. Sequence level genome-wide associations for bull production and fertility traits in tropically adapted bulls. BMC Genomics 2023; 24:365. [PMID: 37386436 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-023-09475-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2022] [Accepted: 06/21/2023] [Indexed: 07/01/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The genetics of male fertility is complex and not fully understood. Male subfertility can adversely affect the economics of livestock production. For example, inadvertently mating bulls with poor fertility can result in reduced annual liveweight production and suboptimal husbandry management. Fertility traits, such as scrotal circumference and semen quality are commonly used to select bulls before mating and can be targeted in genomic studies. In this study, we conducted genome-wide association analyses using sequence-level data targeting seven bull production and fertility traits measured in a multi-breed population of 6,422 tropically adapted bulls. The beef bull production and fertility traits included body weight (Weight), body condition score (CS), scrotal circumference (SC), sheath score (Sheath), percentage of normal spermatozoa (PNS), percentage of spermatozoa with mid-piece abnormalities (MP) and percentage of spermatozoa with proximal droplets (PD). RESULTS After quality control, 13,398,171 polymorphisms were tested for their associations with each trait in a mixed-model approach, fitting a multi-breed genomic relationship matrix. A Bonferroni genome-wide significance threshold of 5 × 10- 8 was imposed. This effort led to identifying genetic variants and candidate genes underpinning bull fertility and production traits. Genetic variants in Bos taurus autosome (BTA) 5 were associated with SC, Sheath, PNS, PD and MP. Whereas chromosome X was significant for SC, PNS, and PD. The traits we studied are highly polygenic and had significant results across the genome (BTA 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 14, 16, 18, 19, 23, 28, and 29). We also highlighted potential high-impact variants and candidate genes associated with Scrotal Circumference (SC) and Sheath Score (Sheath), which warrants further investigation in future studies. CONCLUSION The work presented here is a step closer to identifying molecular mechanisms that underpin bull fertility and production. Our work also emphasises the importance of including the X chromosome in genomic analyses. Future research aims to investigate potential causative variants and genes in downstream analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Liang Andre Tan
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, Chemistry Bld, 68 Cooper Rd, Brisbane City, QLD, 4072, Australia.
| | | | - Antonio Reverter
- CSIRO Agriculture and Food, 306 Carmody Road, St Lucia, QLD, 4067, Australia
| | - Michael McGowan
- School of Veterinary Science, The University of Queensland, Gatton, QLD, 4343, Australia
| | - Marina Rufino Salinas Fortes
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, Chemistry Bld, 68 Cooper Rd, Brisbane City, QLD, 4072, Australia
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Shi H, Li T, Su M, Wang H, Li Q, Lang X, Ma Y. Whole genome sequencing revealed genetic diversity, population structure, and selective signature of Panou Tibetan sheep. BMC Genomics 2023; 24:50. [PMID: 36707771 PMCID: PMC9883975 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-023-09146-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2022] [Accepted: 01/20/2023] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The detection of selective traits in different populations can not only reveal current mechanisms of artificial selection for breeding, but also provide new insights into phenotypic variation in new varieties and the search for genes associated with important traits. Panou sheep is a cultivated breed of Tibetan sheep in China with stable genetic performance, consistent appearance and fast growth and development after decades of artificial selection and cultivation. Due to long-term adaptation to the high altitude, cold and hypoxic environment in the plateau area, they may have formed a unique gene pool that is different from other Tibetan sheep breeds. To explore the genetic resources of Panou sheep, we used next-generation sequencing technology for the first time to investigate the genome-wide population structure, genetic diversity, and candidate signatures of positive selection in Panou sheep. RESULTS Comparative genomic analysis with the closely related species Oula sheep (a native breed of Tibetan sheep in China) was used to screen the population selection signal of Panou sheep. Principal component analysis and neighbor joining tree showed that Panou sheep and Oula sheep had differences in population differentiation. Furthermore, analyses of population structure, they came from the same ancestor, and when K = 2, the two populations could be distinguished. Panou sheep exhibit genetic diversity comparable to Oula sheep, as shown by observed heterozygosity, expected heterozygosity and runs of homozygosity. Genome-wide scanning using the Fst and π ratio methods revealed a list of potentially selected related genes in Panou sheep compared to Oula sheep, including histone deacetylase 9 (HDAC9), protein tyrosine kinase 2 (PTK2), microphthalmia-related transcription factor (MITF), vesicular amine transporter 1 (VAT1), trichohyalin-like 1 (TCHHL1), amine oxidase, copper containing 3 (AOC3), interferon-inducible protein 35 (IFI35). CONCLUSIONS The results suggest that traits related to growth and development and plateau adaptation may be selection targets for the domestication and breeding improvement of Tibetan sheep. This study provides the fundamental footprints for Panou sheep breeding and management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huibin Shi
- grid.411734.40000 0004 1798 5176College of Animal Science and Technology, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, 730070 China ,Gansu Key Laboratory of Animal Generational Physiology and Reproductive Regulation, Lanzhou, 730070 China
| | - Taotao Li
- grid.411734.40000 0004 1798 5176College of Animal Science and Technology, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, 730070 China ,Gansu Key Laboratory of Animal Generational Physiology and Reproductive Regulation, Lanzhou, 730070 China
| | - Manchun Su
- grid.411734.40000 0004 1798 5176College of Animal Science and Technology, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, 730070 China ,Gansu Key Laboratory of Animal Generational Physiology and Reproductive Regulation, Lanzhou, 730070 China
| | - Huihui Wang
- grid.411734.40000 0004 1798 5176College of Animal Science and Technology, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, 730070 China ,Gansu Key Laboratory of Animal Generational Physiology and Reproductive Regulation, Lanzhou, 730070 China
| | - Qiao Li
- grid.411734.40000 0004 1798 5176College of Animal Science and Technology, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, 730070 China ,Gansu Key Laboratory of Animal Generational Physiology and Reproductive Regulation, Lanzhou, 730070 China
| | - Xia Lang
- grid.464277.40000 0004 0646 9133Institute of Animal & Pasture Science and Green Agriculture, Gansu Academy of Agricultural Science, Lanzhou, 730070 China
| | - Youji Ma
- grid.411734.40000 0004 1798 5176College of Animal Science and Technology, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, 730070 China ,Gansu Key Laboratory of Animal Generational Physiology and Reproductive Regulation, Lanzhou, 730070 China
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Al Kalaldeh M, Swaminathan M, Podtar V, Jadhav S, Dhanikachalam V, Joshi A, Gibson JP. Detection of genomic regions that differentiate Bos indicus from Bos taurus ancestral breeds for milk yield in Indian crossbred cows. Front Genet 2023; 13:1082802. [PMID: 36699459 PMCID: PMC9868639 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2022.1082802] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2022] [Accepted: 12/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction: In India, crossbred cows incorporate the high production of B. taurus dairy breeds and the environmental adaptation of local B. indicus cattle. Adaptation to different environments and selection in milk production have shaped the genetic differences between B. indicus and B. taurus cattle. The aim of this paper was to detect, for milk yield of crossbred cows, quantitative trait loci (QTL) that differentiate B. indicus from B. taurus ancestry, as well as QTL that are segregating within the ancestral breeds. Methods: A total of 123,042 test-day milk records for 4,968 crossbred cows, genotyped with real and imputed 770 K SNP, were used. Breed origins were assigned to haplotypes of crossbred cows, and from that, were assigned to SNP alleles. Results: At a false discovery rate (FDR) of 30%, a large number of genomic regions showed significant effects of B. indicus versus B. taurus origin on milk yield, with positive effects coming from both ancestors. No significant regions were detected for Holstein Friesian (HF) versus Jersey effects on milk yield. Additionally, no regions for SNP alleles segregating within indigenous, within HF, and within Jersey were detected. The most significant effects, at FDR 5%, were found in a region on BTA5 (43.98-49.44 Mbp) that differentiates B. indicus from B. taurus, with an estimated difference between homozygotes of approximately 10% of average yield, in favour of B. indicus origin. Discussion: Our results indicate that evolutionary differences between B. indicus and B. taurus cattle for milk yield, as expressed in crossbred cows, occur at many causative loci across the genome. Although subject to the usual first estimation bias, some of the loci appear to have large effects that might make them useful for genomic selection in crossbreds, if confirmed in subsequent studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammad Al Kalaldeh
- Centre for Genetic Analysis and Applications, School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia,*Correspondence: Mohammad Al Kalaldeh, ; John P. Gibson,
| | - Marimuthu Swaminathan
- BAIF Development Research Foundation and Central Research Station, Pune, Maharashtra, India
| | - Vinod Podtar
- BAIF Development Research Foundation and Central Research Station, Pune, Maharashtra, India
| | - Santoshkumar Jadhav
- BAIF Development Research Foundation and Central Research Station, Pune, Maharashtra, India
| | - Velu Dhanikachalam
- BAIF Development Research Foundation and Central Research Station, Pune, Maharashtra, India
| | - Akshay Joshi
- BAIF Development Research Foundation and Central Research Station, Pune, Maharashtra, India
| | - John P. Gibson
- Centre for Genetic Analysis and Applications, School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia,*Correspondence: Mohammad Al Kalaldeh, ; John P. Gibson,
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Porto-Neto LR, Alexandre PA, Hudson NJ, Bertram J, McWilliam SM, Tan AWL, Fortes MRS, McGowan MR, Hayes BJ, Reverter A. Multi-breed genomic predictions and functional variants for fertility of tropical bulls. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0279398. [PMID: 36701372 PMCID: PMC9879470 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0279398] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2022] [Accepted: 12/07/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Worldwide, most beef breeding herds are naturally mated. As such, the ability to identify and select fertile bulls is critically important for both productivity and genetic improvement. Here, we collected ten fertility-related phenotypes for 6,063 bulls from six tropically adapted breeds. Phenotypes were comprised of four bull conformation traits and six traits directly related to the quality of the bull's semen. We also generated high-density DNA genotypes for all the animals. In total, 680,758 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotypes were analyzed. The genomic correlation of the same trait observed in different breeds was positive for scrotal circumference and sheath score on most breed comparisons, but close to zero for the percentage of normal sperm, suggesting a divergent genetic background for this trait. We confirmed the importance of a breed being present in the reference population to the generation of accurate genomic estimated breeding values (GEBV) in an across-breed validation scenario. Average GEBV accuracies varied from 0.19 to 0.44 when the breed was not included in the reference population. The range improved to 0.28 to 0.59 when the breed was in the reference population. Variants associated with the gene HDAC4, six genes from the spermatogenesis-associated (SPATA) family of proteins, and 29 transcription factors were identified as candidate genes. Collectively these results enable very early in-life selection for bull fertility traits, supporting genetic improvement strategies currently taking place within tropical beef production systems. This study also improves our understanding of the molecular basis of male fertility in mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Nicholas J. Hudson
- School of Animal Studies, The University of Queensland, Gatton, QLD, Australia
| | - John Bertram
- Agriculture Consultant, Livestock Management and Breeding, Toowoomba, QLD, Australia
| | | | - Andre W. L. Tan
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
| | - Marina R. S. Fortes
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
| | - Michael R. McGowan
- School of Veterinary Sciences, The University of Queensland, Gatton, QLD, Australia
| | - Ben J. Hayes
- Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
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Tijjani A, Salim B, da Silva MVB, Eltahir HA, Musa TH, Marshall K, Hanotte O, Musa HH. Genomic signatures for drylands adaptation at gene-rich regions in African zebu cattle. Genomics 2022; 114:110423. [PMID: 35803449 PMCID: PMC9388378 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2022.110423] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2022] [Revised: 06/20/2022] [Accepted: 06/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Background Indigenous Sudanese cattle are mainly indicine/zebu (humped) type. They thrive in the harshest dryland environments characterised by high temperatures, long seasonal dry periods, nutritional shortages, and vector disease challenges. Here, we sequenced 60 indigenous Sudanese cattle from six indigenous breeds and analysed the data using three genomic scan approaches to unravel cattle adaptation to the African dryland region. Results We identified a set of gene-rich selective sweep regions, detected mostly on chromosomes 5, 7 and 19, shared across African and Gir zebu. These include genes involved in immune response, body size and conformation, and heat stress response. We also identified selective sweep regions unique to Sudanese zebu. Of these, a 250 kb selective sweep on chromosome 16 spans seven genes, including PLCH2, PEX10, PRKCZ, and SKI, which are involved in alternative adaptive metabolic strategies of insulin signalling, glucose homeostasis, and fat metabolism. Conclusions Our results suggest that environmental adaptation may involve recent and ancient selection at gene-rich regions, which might be under a common regulatory genetic control, in zebu cattle. Sudanese cattle thrive in the harshest environments of the African drylands. Bos indicus shared selected genes are involved in immune response, conformation, and heat stress response. Sudanese zebu-specific sweep includes genes involved in alternative adaptive metabolic strategies of insulin signalling, glucose homeostasis, and fat metabolism. Environmental adaptation in zebu cattle may involve recent and ancient selection at gene-rich regions, which might be under a common regulatory genetic control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abdulfatai Tijjani
- International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), PO 5689, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH), ILRI Ethiopia, PO Box 5689, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Cells, Organisms and Molecular Genetics, School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, United Kingdom.
| | - Bashir Salim
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Khartoum, Sudan
| | | | | | - Taha H Musa
- Biomedical Research Institute, Darfur College, Sudan
| | - Karen Marshall
- International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), PO Box 30709, Nairobi 00100, Kenya; Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH), ILRI Kenya, P.O. Box 30709, Nairobi 00100, Kenya
| | - Olivier Hanotte
- International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), PO 5689, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH), ILRI Ethiopia, PO Box 5689, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Cells, Organisms and Molecular Genetics, School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, United Kingdom.
| | - Hassan H Musa
- Institute of Molecular Biology, University of Nyala, Sudan; Faculty of Medical Laboratory Sciences, University of Khartoum, Sudan.
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10
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Sun L, Qu K, Ma X, Hanif Q, Zhang J, Liu J, Chen N, Suolang Q, Lei C, Huang B. Whole-Genome Analyses Reveal Genomic Characteristics and Selection Signatures of Lincang Humped Cattle at the China-Myanmar Border. Front Genet 2022; 13:833503. [PMID: 35391795 PMCID: PMC8981028 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2022.833503] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2021] [Accepted: 03/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The location on the Yunnan border with Myanmar and its unique cultural landscape has shaped Lincang humped cattle over time. In the current study, we investigated the genetic characteristics of 22 Lincang humped cattle using whole-genome resequencing data. We found that Lincang humped cattle derived from both Indian indicine and Chinese indicine cattle depicted higher levels of genomic diversity. Based on genome-wide scans, candidate genomic regions were identified that were potentially involved in local thermal and humid environmental adaptions, including genes associated with the body size (TCF12, SENP2, KIF1C, and PFN1), immunity (LIPH, IRAK3, GZMM, and ELANE), and heat tolerance (MED16, DNAJC8, HSPA4, FILIP1L, HELB, BCL2L1, and TPX2). Missense mutations were detected in candidate genes IRAK3, HSPA4, and HELB. Interestingly, eight missense mutations observed in the HELB gene were specific to the indicine cattle pedigree. These mutations may reveal differences between indicine and taurine cattle adapted to variable climatic conditions. Our research provides new insights into the genetic characteristics of Lincang humped cattle representing Lincang and Pu'er areas as an important channel for the migration of Indian indicine from domestication centers toward southwestern China.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luyang Sun
- Yunnan Academy of Grassland and Animal Science, Kunming, China.,Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Shaanxi Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China
| | - Kaixing Qu
- Academy of Science and Technology, Chuxiong Normal University, Chuxiong, China
| | - Xiaohui Ma
- Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Shaanxi Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China
| | - Quratulain Hanif
- National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Faisalabad, Pakistan
| | - Jicai Zhang
- Yunnan Academy of Grassland and Animal Science, Kunming, China
| | - Jianyong Liu
- Yunnan Academy of Grassland and Animal Science, Kunming, China
| | - Ningbo Chen
- Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Shaanxi Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China
| | - Quji Suolang
- Institute of Animal Science, Tibet Academy of Agricultural and Animal Husbandry Science, Lhasa, China
| | - Chuzhao Lei
- Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Shaanxi Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China
| | - Bizhi Huang
- Yunnan Academy of Grassland and Animal Science, Kunming, China
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11
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Balbi M, Bonamy M, Fernandez ME, Cecco P, Vaca RJA, Rogberg Muñoz A, Peral Gacía P, Prando AJ, Giovambattista G. Coat score. A possible explanation for the zebuine selective sweep located on bovine chromosome 5: 47,670,001-48,100,000 bp. Anim Biotechnol 2022:1-7. [PMID: 35130466 DOI: 10.1080/10495398.2022.2029464] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Abstract
Over 65% of the world's cattle population resides in warm areas where heat stress conditions limit the breed of European taurine cattle. Composite breeds were developed to retain the main traits of both parental breeds. The skin plays a central role in animal response to heat stress. Research on the genetic architecture of skin traits has identified genes and regions related to warm resistance skin features. The aim of this study was to determine whether the indicine proportion accounted for coat type or whether there were genes of large effect segregating in Brangus. Bulls (n = 108) were genotyped using microarrays and their coat score and hair length were evaluated. Indicine-taurine genome-wide composition was estimated and GWAS was performed. Although significant correlations between indicine proportion and traits were not observed, four windows of SNPs on BTA4 and BTA5 explained more than 2% of the trait variance. The GWAS for coat score in summer showed the main peak on BTA5:46,941,446-48,030,219 bp, accounting for 4.65% of the variance. Our results suggest that the variation in coat score and undercoat hair length in Argentinian Brangus bulls is associated with the presence of some particular gene variants, rather than with the whole indicine genetic content.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marianela Balbi
- Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, IGEVET-Instituto de Genética Veterinaria "Ing. Noel Dulout" (UNLP-CONICET LA PLATA), Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina.,Cátedra de Producción Bovina, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Martín Bonamy
- Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, IGEVET-Instituto de Genética Veterinaria "Ing. Noel Dulout" (UNLP-CONICET LA PLATA), Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina.,Cátedra de Producción Bovina, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina
| | - María Elena Fernandez
- Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, IGEVET-Instituto de Genética Veterinaria "Ing. Noel Dulout" (UNLP-CONICET LA PLATA), Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Paulo Cecco
- Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, IGEVET-Instituto de Genética Veterinaria "Ing. Noel Dulout" (UNLP-CONICET LA PLATA), Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Roberto J A Vaca
- Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, IGEVET-Instituto de Genética Veterinaria "Ing. Noel Dulout" (UNLP-CONICET LA PLATA), Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Andrés Rogberg Muñoz
- Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, IGEVET-Instituto de Genética Veterinaria "Ing. Noel Dulout" (UNLP-CONICET LA PLATA), Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina.,Facultad de Agronomía, INPA-Instituto de Producción Animal UBA-CONICET, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Pilar Peral Gacía
- Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, IGEVET-Instituto de Genética Veterinaria "Ing. Noel Dulout" (UNLP-CONICET LA PLATA), Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Alberto J Prando
- Cátedra de Producción Bovina, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Guillermo Giovambattista
- Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, IGEVET-Instituto de Genética Veterinaria "Ing. Noel Dulout" (UNLP-CONICET LA PLATA), Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina
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12
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Maiorano AM, Cardoso DF, Carvalheiro R, Júnior GAF, de Albuquerque LG, de Oliveira HN. Signatures of selection in Nelore cattle revealed by whole-genome sequencing data. Genomics 2022; 114:110304. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2022.110304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2021] [Revised: 01/07/2022] [Accepted: 02/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
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13
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Vanvanhossou SFU, Yin T, Scheper C, Fries R, Dossa LH, König S. Unraveling Admixture, Inbreeding, and Recent Selection Signatures in West African Indigenous Cattle Populations in Benin. Front Genet 2021; 12:657282. [PMID: 34956303 PMCID: PMC8694269 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2021.657282] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2021] [Accepted: 10/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The Dwarf Lagune and the Savannah Somba cattle in Benin are typical representatives of the endangered West African indigenous Shorthorn taurine. The Lagune was previously exported to African and European countries and bred as Dahomey cattle, whereas the Somba contributed to the formation of two indigenous hybrids known as Borgou and Pabli cattle. These breeds are affected by demographic, economic, and environmental pressures in local production systems. Considering current and historical genomic data, we applied a formal test of admixture, estimated admixture proportions, and computed genomic inbreeding coefficients to characterize the five breeds. Subsequently, we unraveled the most recent selection signatures using the cross-population extended haplotype homozygosity approach, based on the current and historical genotypes. Results from principal component analyses and high proportion of Lagune ancestry confirm the Lagune origin of the European Dahomey cattle. Moreover, the Dahomey cattle displayed neither indicine nor European taurine (EUT) background, but they shared on average 40% of autozygosity from common ancestors, dated approximately eight generations ago. The Lagune cattle presented inbreeding coefficients larger than 0.13; however, the Somba and the hybrids (Borgou and Pabli) were less inbred (≤0.08). We detected evidence of admixture in the Somba and Lagune cattle, but they exhibited a similar African taurine (AFT) ancestral proportion (≥96%) to historical populations, respectively. A moderate and stable AFT ancestral proportion (62%) was also inferred for less admixed hybrid cattle including the Pabli. In contrast, the current Borgou samples displayed a lower AFT ancestral proportion (47%) than historical samples (63%). Irrespective of the admixture proportions, the hybrid populations displayed more selection signatures related to economic traits (reproduction, growth, and milk) than the taurine. In contrast, the taurine, especially the Somba, presented several regions known to be associated with adaptive traits (immunity and feed efficiency). The identified subregion of bovine leukocyte antigen (BoLA) class IIb (including DSB and BOLA-DYA) in Somba cattle is interestingly uncommon in other African breeds, suggesting further investigations to understand its association with specific adaptation to endemic diseases in Benin. Overall, our study provides deeper insights into recent evolutionary processes in the Beninese indigenous cattle and their aptitude for conservation and genetic improvement.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Tong Yin
- Institute of Animal Breeding and Genetics, Justus-Liebig-University Gießen, Gießen, Germany
| | - Carsten Scheper
- Institute of Animal Breeding and Genetics, Justus-Liebig-University Gießen, Gießen, Germany
| | - Ruedi Fries
- Chair of Animal Breeding, Technische Universität München, Freising-Weihenstephan, Germany
| | - Luc Hippolyte Dossa
- School of Science and Technics of Animal Production, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Abomey-Calavi, Abomey-Calavi, Benin
| | - Sven König
- Institute of Animal Breeding and Genetics, Justus-Liebig-University Gießen, Gießen, Germany
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14
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Liu D, Chen Z, Zhao W, Guo L, Sun H, Zhu K, Liu G, Shen X, Zhao X, Wang Q, Ma P, Pan Y. Genome-wide selection signatures detection in Shanghai Holstein cattle population identified genes related to adaption, health and reproduction traits. BMC Genomics 2021; 22:747. [PMID: 34654366 PMCID: PMC8520274 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-021-08042-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2021] [Accepted: 09/28/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Over several decades, a wide range of natural and artificial selection events in response to subtropical environments, intensive pasture and intensive feedlot systems have greatly changed the customary behaviour, appearance, and important economic traits of Shanghai Holstein cattle. In particular, the longevity of the Shanghai Holstein cattle population is generally short, approximately the 2nd to 3rd lactation. In this study, two complementary approaches, integrated haplotype score (iHS) and runs of homozygosity (ROH), were applied for the detection of selection signatures within the genome using genotyping by genome-reduced sequence data from 1092 cows. Results In total, 101 significant iHS genomic regions containing selection signatures encompassing a total of 256 candidate genes were detected. There were 27 significant |iHS| genomic regions with a mean |iHS| score > 2. The average number of ROH per individual was 42.15 ± 25.47, with an average size of 2.95 Mb. The length of 78 % of the detected ROH was within the range of 1–2 MB and 2–4 MB, and 99 % were shorter than 8 Mb. A total of 168 genes were detected in 18 ROH islands (top 1 %) across 16 autosomes, in which each SNP showed a percentage of occurrence > 30 %. There were 160 and 167 genes associated with the 52 candidate regions within health-related QTL intervals and 59 candidate regions within reproduction-related QTL intervals, respectively. Annotation of the regions harbouring clustered |iHS| signals and candidate regions for ROH revealed a panel of interesting candidate genes associated with adaptation and economic traits, such as IL22RA1, CALHM3, ITGA9, NDUFB3, RGS3, SOD2, SNRPA1, ST3GAL4, ALAD, EXOSC10, and MASP2. In a further step, a total of 1472 SNPs in 256 genes were matched with 352 cis-eQTLs in 21 tissues and 27 trans-eQTLs in 6 tissues. For SNPs located in candidate regions for ROH, a total of 108 cis-eQTLs in 13 tissues and 4 trans-eQTLs were found for 1092 SNPs. Eighty-one eGenes were significantly expressed in at least one tissue relevant to a trait (P value < 0.05) and matched the 256 genes detected by iHS. For the 168 significant genes detected by ROH, 47 gene-tissue pairs were significantly associated with at least one of the 37 traits. Conclusions We provide a comprehensive overview of selection signatures in Shanghai Holstein cattle genomes by combining iHS and ROH. Our study provides a list of genes associated with immunity, reproduction and adaptation. For functional annotation, the cGTEx resource was used to interpret SNP-trait associations. The results may facilitate the identification of genes relevant to important economic traits and can help us better understand the biological processes and mechanisms affected by strong ongoing natural or artificial selection in livestock populations. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12864-021-08042-x.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dengying Liu
- Department of Animal Science, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 200240, Shanghai, PR China
| | - Zhenliang Chen
- Department of Animal Science, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 200240, Shanghai, PR China
| | - Wei Zhao
- Department of Animal Science, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 200240, Shanghai, PR China
| | - Longyu Guo
- Department of Animal Science, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 200240, Shanghai, PR China
| | - Hao Sun
- Department of Animal Science, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 200240, Shanghai, PR China
| | - Kai Zhu
- Shanghai Dairy Cattle Breeding Centre Co., Ltd, 201901, Shanghai, P.R. China
| | - Guanglei Liu
- Shanghai Dairy Cattle Breeding Centre Co., Ltd, 201901, Shanghai, P.R. China
| | - Xiuping Shen
- Shanghai Agricultural Development Promotion Center, 200335, Shanghai, PR China
| | - Xiaoduo Zhao
- Shanghai Dairy Cattle Breeding Centre Co., Ltd, 201901, Shanghai, P.R. China
| | - Qishan Wang
- Department of Animal Breeding and Reproduction, College of Animal Science, Zhejiang University, 310058, Hangzhou, PR China
| | - Peipei Ma
- Department of Animal Science, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 200240, Shanghai, PR China.
| | - Yuchun Pan
- Department of Animal Breeding and Reproduction, College of Animal Science, Zhejiang University, 310058, Hangzhou, PR China.
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15
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Alexandre PA, Naval-Sánchez M, Menzies M, Nguyen LT, Porto-Neto LR, Fortes MRS, Reverter A. Chromatin accessibility and regulatory vocabulary across indicine cattle tissues. Genome Biol 2021; 22:273. [PMID: 34548076 PMCID: PMC8454054 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-021-02489-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2020] [Accepted: 09/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Spatiotemporal changes in the chromatin accessibility landscape are essential to cell differentiation, development, health, and disease. The quest of identifying regulatory elements in open chromatin regions across different tissues and developmental stages is led by large international collaborative efforts mostly focusing on model organisms, such as ENCODE. Recently, the Functional Annotation of Animal Genomes (FAANG) has been established to unravel the regulatory elements in non-model organisms, including cattle. Now, we can transition from prediction to validation by experimentally identifying the regulatory elements in tropical indicine cattle. The identification of regulatory elements, their annotation and comparison with the taurine counterpart, holds high promise to link regulatory regions to adaptability traits and improve animal productivity and welfare. RESULTS We generate open chromatin profiles for liver, muscle, and hypothalamus of indicine cattle through ATAC-seq. Using robust methods for motif discovery, motif enrichment and transcription factor binding sites, we identify potential master regulators of the epigenomic profile in these three tissues, namely HNF4, MEF2, and SOX factors, respectively. Integration with transcriptomic data allows us to confirm some of their target genes. Finally, by comparing our results with Bos taurus data we identify potential indicine-specific open chromatin regions and overlaps with indicine selective sweeps. CONCLUSIONS Our findings provide insights into the identification and analysis of regulatory elements in non-model organisms, the evolution of regulatory elements within two cattle subspecies as well as having an immediate impact on the animal genetics community in particular for a relevant productive species such as tropical cattle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pâmela A Alexandre
- CSIRO Agriculture & Food, 306 Carmody Rd., QLD, 4067, Brisbane, Australia.
| | - Marina Naval-Sánchez
- CSIRO Agriculture & Food, 306 Carmody Rd., QLD, 4067, Brisbane, Australia
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, 4072, Australia
| | - Moira Menzies
- CSIRO Agriculture & Food, 306 Carmody Rd., QLD, 4067, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Loan T Nguyen
- Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, 4072, Australia
| | | | - Marina R S Fortes
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, 4072, Australia
| | - Antonio Reverter
- CSIRO Agriculture & Food, 306 Carmody Rd., QLD, 4067, Brisbane, Australia
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16
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Huang R, Zhou PK. DNA damage repair: historical perspectives, mechanistic pathways and clinical translation for targeted cancer therapy. Signal Transduct Target Ther 2021; 6:254. [PMID: 34238917 PMCID: PMC8266832 DOI: 10.1038/s41392-021-00648-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 229] [Impact Index Per Article: 76.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2021] [Revised: 04/28/2021] [Accepted: 05/13/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Genomic instability is the hallmark of various cancers with the increasing accumulation of DNA damage. The application of radiotherapy and chemotherapy in cancer treatment is typically based on this property of cancers. However, the adverse effects including normal tissues injury are also accompanied by the radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Targeted cancer therapy has the potential to suppress cancer cells' DNA damage response through tailoring therapy to cancer patients lacking specific DNA damage response functions. Obviously, understanding the broader role of DNA damage repair in cancers has became a basic and attractive strategy for targeted cancer therapy, in particular, raising novel hypothesis or theory in this field on the basis of previous scientists' findings would be important for future promising druggable emerging targets. In this review, we first illustrate the timeline steps for the understanding the roles of DNA damage repair in the promotion of cancer and cancer therapy developed, then we summarize the mechanisms regarding DNA damage repair associated with targeted cancer therapy, highlighting the specific proteins behind targeting DNA damage repair that initiate functioning abnormally duo to extrinsic harm by environmental DNA damage factors, also, the DNA damage baseline drift leads to the harmful intrinsic targeted cancer therapy. In addition, clinical therapeutic drugs for DNA damage and repair including therapeutic effects, as well as the strategy and scheme of relative clinical trials were intensive discussed. Based on this background, we suggest two hypotheses, namely "environmental gear selection" to describe DNA damage repair pathway evolution, and "DNA damage baseline drift", which may play a magnified role in mediating repair during cancer treatment. This two new hypothesis would shed new light on targeted cancer therapy, provide a much better or more comprehensive holistic view and also promote the development of new research direction and new overcoming strategies for patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruixue Huang
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Xiangya School of Public Health, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, China
| | - Ping-Kun Zhou
- Department of Radiation Biology, Beijing Key Laboratory for Radiobiology, Beijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, AMMS, Beijing, China.
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17
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Genome-wide comparative analyses reveal selection signatures underlying adaptation and production in Tibetan and Poll Dorset sheep. Sci Rep 2021; 11:2466. [PMID: 33510350 PMCID: PMC7844035 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-81932-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2020] [Accepted: 01/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The identification of genome-wide selection signatures can provide insights on the mechanisms of natural and/or artificial selection and uncover genes related to biological functions and/or phenotypes. Tibetan sheep are an important livestock in Tibet, providing meat and wool for Tibetans who are renown for breeding livestock that adapt well to high altitudes. Using whole-genome sequences with an effective sequencing depth of 5×, we investigated the genomic diversity and structure and, identified selection signatures of White Tibetan, Oula and Poll Dorset sheep. We obtained 30,163,679 Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) and 5,388,372 indels benchmarked against the ovine Oar_v4.0 genome assembly. Next, using FST, ZHp and XP-EHH approaches, we identified selection signatures spanning a set of candidate genes, including HIF1A, CAPN3, PRKAA1, RXFP2, TRHR and HOXA10 that are associated with pathways and GO categories putatively related to hypoxia responses, meat traits and disease resistance. Candidate genes and GO terms associated with coat color were also identified. Finally, quantification of blood physiological parameters, revealed higher levels of mean corpuscular hemoglobin measurement and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration in Tibetan sheep compared with Poll Dorset, suggesting a greater oxygen-carrying capacity in the Tibetan sheep and thus better adaptation to high-altitude hypoxia. In conclusion, this study provides a greater understanding of genome diversity and variations associated with adaptive and production traits in sheep.
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18
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Alexandre PA, Reverter A, Berezin RB, Porto-Neto LR, Ribeiro G, Santana MHA, Ferraz JBS, Fukumasu H. Exploring the Regulatory Potential of Long Non-Coding RNA in Feed Efficiency of Indicine Cattle. Genes (Basel) 2020; 11:genes11090997. [PMID: 32854445 PMCID: PMC7565090 DOI: 10.3390/genes11090997] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2020] [Revised: 08/19/2020] [Accepted: 08/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) can regulate several aspects of gene expression, being associated with complex phenotypes in humans and livestock species. In taurine beef cattle, recent evidence points to the involvement of lncRNA in feed efficiency (FE), a proxy for increased productivity and sustainability. Here, we hypothesized specific regulatory roles of lncRNA in FE of indicine cattle. Using RNA-Seq data from the liver, muscle, hypothalamus, pituitary gland and adrenal gland from Nellore bulls with divergent FE, we submitted new transcripts to a series of filters to confidently predict lncRNA. Then, we identified lncRNA that were differentially expressed (DE) and/or key regulators of FE. Finally, we explored lncRNA genomic location and interactions with miRNA and mRNA to infer potential function. We were able to identify 126 relevant lncRNA for FE in Bos indicus, some with high homology to previously identified lncRNA in Bos taurus and some possible specific regulators of FE in indicine cattle. Moreover, lncRNA identified here were linked to previously described mechanisms related to FE in hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis and are expected to help elucidate this complex phenotype. This study contributes to expanding the catalogue of lncRNA, particularly in indicine cattle, and identifies candidates for further studies in animal selection and management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pâmela A. Alexandre
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Pirassununga, Sao Paulo 13635-900, Brazil; (R.B.B.); (G.R.); (J.B.S.F.); (H.F.)
- Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Agriculture & Food, St. Lucia, Brisbane, QLD 4067, Australia; (A.R.); (L.R.P.-N.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +61-7-32142453
| | - Antonio Reverter
- Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Agriculture & Food, St. Lucia, Brisbane, QLD 4067, Australia; (A.R.); (L.R.P.-N.)
| | - Roberta B. Berezin
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Pirassununga, Sao Paulo 13635-900, Brazil; (R.B.B.); (G.R.); (J.B.S.F.); (H.F.)
| | - Laercio R. Porto-Neto
- Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Agriculture & Food, St. Lucia, Brisbane, QLD 4067, Australia; (A.R.); (L.R.P.-N.)
| | - Gabriela Ribeiro
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Pirassununga, Sao Paulo 13635-900, Brazil; (R.B.B.); (G.R.); (J.B.S.F.); (H.F.)
| | - Miguel H. A. Santana
- Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Pirassununga, Sao Paulo 13635-900, Brazil;
| | - José Bento S. Ferraz
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Pirassununga, Sao Paulo 13635-900, Brazil; (R.B.B.); (G.R.); (J.B.S.F.); (H.F.)
| | - Heidge Fukumasu
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Pirassununga, Sao Paulo 13635-900, Brazil; (R.B.B.); (G.R.); (J.B.S.F.); (H.F.)
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19
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Fortes MRS, Porto-Neto LR, Satake N, Nguyen LT, Freitas AC, Melo TP, Scalez DCB, Hayes B, Raidan FSS, Reverter A, Boe-Hansen GB. X chromosome variants are associated with male fertility traits in two bovine populations. Genet Sel Evol 2020; 52:46. [PMID: 32787790 PMCID: PMC7425018 DOI: 10.1186/s12711-020-00563-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2018] [Accepted: 07/22/2020] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Twenty-five phenotypes were measured as indicators of bull fertility (1099 Brahman and 1719 Tropical Composite bulls). Measurements included sperm morphology, scrotal circumference, and sperm chromatin phenotypes such as DNA fragmentation and protamine deficiency. We estimated the heritability of these phenotypes and carried out genome-wide association studies (GWAS) within breed, using the bovine high-density chip, to detect quantitative trait loci (QTL). RESULTS Our analyses suggested that both sperm DNA fragmentation and sperm protamine deficiency are heritable (h2 from 0.10 to 0.22). To confirm these first estimates of heritability, further studies on sperm chromatin traits, with larger datasets are necessary. Our GWAS identified 12 QTL for bull fertility traits, based on at least five polymorphisms (P < 10-8) for each QTL. Five QTL were identified in Brahman and another seven in Tropical Composite bulls. Most of the significant polymorphisms detected in both breeds and nine of the 12 QTL were on chromosome X. The QTL were breed-specific, but for some traits, a closer inspection of the GWAS results revealed suggestive single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) associations (P < 10-7) in both breeds. For example, the QTL for inhibin level in Braham could be relevant to Tropical Composites too (many polymorphisms reached P < 10-7 in the same region). The QTL for sperm midpiece morphological abnormalities on chromosome X (QTL peak at 4.92 Mb, P < 10-17) is an example of a breed-specific QTL, supported by 143 significant SNPs (P < 10-8) in Brahman, but absent in Tropical Composites. Our GWAS results add evidence to the mammalian specialization of the X chromosome, which during evolution has accumulated genes linked to spermatogenesis. Some of the polymorphisms on chromosome X were associated to more than one genetically correlated trait (correlations ranged from 0.33 to 0.51). Correlations and shared polymorphism associations support the hypothesis that these phenotypes share the same underlying cause, i.e. defective spermatogenesis. CONCLUSIONS Genetic improvement for bull fertility is possible through genomic selection, which is likely more accurate if the QTL on chromosome X are considered in the predictions. Polymorphisms associated with male fertility accumulate on this chromosome in cattle, as in humans and mice, suggesting its specialization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina R. S. Fortes
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, Saint Lucia Campus, Brisbane, QLD 4072 Australia
- Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation (QAAFI), The University of Queensland, Saint Lucia Campus, Brisbane, QLD 4072 Australia
| | | | - Nana Satake
- School of Veterinary Science, The University of Queensland, Gatton Campus, Gatton, QLD 4343 Australia
| | - Loan T. Nguyen
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, Saint Lucia Campus, Brisbane, QLD 4072 Australia
- Faculty of Biotechnology, Vietnam National University of Agriculture, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Ana Claudia Freitas
- Department of Animal Science, School of Agricultural and Veterinarian Science, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Jaboticabal, SP Brazil
| | - Thaise P. Melo
- Department of Animal Science, School of Agricultural and Veterinarian Science, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Jaboticabal, SP Brazil
| | - Daiane Cristina Becker Scalez
- Department of Animal Science, School of Agricultural and Veterinarian Science, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Jaboticabal, SP Brazil
| | - Ben Hayes
- Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation (QAAFI), The University of Queensland, Saint Lucia Campus, Brisbane, QLD 4072 Australia
| | | | | | - Gry B. Boe-Hansen
- School of Veterinary Science, The University of Queensland, Gatton Campus, Gatton, QLD 4343 Australia
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