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Kelson VC, Kiser JN, Davenport KM, Suarez EM, Murdoch BM, Neibergs HL. Identifying Regions of the Genome Associated with Conception Rate to the First Service in Holstein Heifers Bred by Artificial Insemination and as Embryo Transfer Recipients. Genes (Basel) 2024; 15:765. [PMID: 38927701 PMCID: PMC11202900 DOI: 10.3390/genes15060765] [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: 05/14/2024] [Revised: 06/05/2024] [Accepted: 06/08/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Heifer conception rate to the first service (HCR1) is defined as the number of heifers that become pregnant to the first breeding service compared to the heifers bred. This study aimed to identify loci associated and gene sets enriched for HCR1 for heifers that were bred by artificial insemination (AI, n = 2829) or were embryo transfer (ET, n = 2086) recipients, by completing a genome-wide association analysis and gene set enrichment analysis using SNP data (GSEA-SNP). Three unique loci, containing four positional candidate genes, were associated (p < 1 × 10-5) with HCR1 for ET recipients, while the GSEA-SNP identified four gene sets (NES ≥ 3) and sixty-two leading edge genes (LEGs) enriched for HCR1. While no loci were associated with HCR1 bred by AI, one gene set and twelve LEGs were enriched (NES ≥ 3) for HCR1 with the GSEA-SNP. This included one gene (PKD2) shared between HCR1 AI and ET services. Identifying loci associated or enriched for HCR1 provides an opportunity to use them as genomic selection tools to facilitate the selection of cattle with higher reproductive efficiency, and to better understand embryonic loss.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria C. Kelson
- Department of Animal Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99163, USA; (V.C.K.); (K.M.D.); (E.M.S.)
| | - Jennifer N. Kiser
- Washington Animal Disease Diagnostics Laboratory, Pullman, WA 99164, USA;
| | - Kimberly M. Davenport
- Department of Animal Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99163, USA; (V.C.K.); (K.M.D.); (E.M.S.)
| | - Emaly M. Suarez
- Department of Animal Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99163, USA; (V.C.K.); (K.M.D.); (E.M.S.)
| | - Brenda M. Murdoch
- Department of Animal, Veterinary and Food Sciences, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID 83844, USA;
| | - Holly L. Neibergs
- Department of Animal Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99163, USA; (V.C.K.); (K.M.D.); (E.M.S.)
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Dias MS, Pedrosa VB, Rocha da Cruz VA, Silva MR, Batista Pinto LF. Genome-wide association and functional annotation analysis for the calving interval in Nellore cattle. Theriogenology 2024; 218:214-222. [PMID: 38350227 DOI: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2024.01.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2023] [Revised: 01/24/2024] [Accepted: 01/25/2024] [Indexed: 02/15/2024]
Abstract
Calving interval (CI) measures the number of days between two consecutive calves of the same cow, and previous studies based on phenotype and pedigree data reported low heritability for this trait. However, the genetic architecture of CI in the Nellore breed was not evaluated based on genomic data. Thus, this study aimed to estimate the heritability based on genomic data and carry out a genome-wide association study (GWAS) for CI in the Nellore breed, using 12,599 pedigree records, 5078 CI records, and 3818 animals genotyped with 50k SNPchip panel. Both quality control and GWAS were performed in BLUPF90 family packages, which use the single-step genomic best linear unbiased predictor (ssGBLUP) method. The average CI was 427.6 days, with a standard deviation of 106.9 and a total range of 270-730 days. The heritability estimate was 0.04 ± 0.04. The p-values of GWAS analysis resulted in a genomic inflation factor (lambda) of 1.08. The only significant SNP (rs136725686) at the genome-wide level (p-value = 1.53E-06) was located on BTA13. Other 19 SNPs were significant at the chromosome-wide level, distributed on BTA1, 2, 3, 6, 10, 13, 14, 17, 18, 22, and 26. Functional annotation analysis found thirty-six protein-coding genes, including genes related to cell cycle (RAD21, BCAR3), oocyte function (LHX8, CLPX, UTP23), immune system (TXK, TEC, NFATC2), endocrine function (LRRFIP2, GPR158), estrous cycle (SLC38A7), and female fertility (CCK, LYZL4, TRAK1, FOXP1, STAC). Therefore, CI is a complex trait with small heritability in Nellore cattle, and various biological processes may be involved with the genetic architecture of CI in Nellore cattle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mayra Silva Dias
- Federal University of Bahia, Animal Science Department, Av. Milton Santos, 500, Ondina, Salvador, BA, 40170-110, Brazil.
| | | | | | - Marcio Ribeiro Silva
- Melhore Animal and Katayama Agropecuaria Lda, Guararapes, SP, 16700-000, Brazil.
| | - Luis Fernando Batista Pinto
- Federal University of Bahia, Animal Science Department, Av. Milton Santos, 500, Ondina, Salvador, BA, 40170-110, Brazil.
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Gangwar M, Kumar S, Ahmad SF, Singh A, Agrawal S, Anitta PL, Kumar A. Identification of genetic variants affecting reproduction traits in Vrindavani cattle. Mamm Genome 2024; 35:99-111. [PMID: 37924370 DOI: 10.1007/s00335-023-10023-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2023] [Accepted: 10/08/2023] [Indexed: 11/06/2023]
Abstract
Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) are one of the best ways to look into the connection between single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and the phenotypic performance. This study aimed to identify the genetic variants that significantly affect the important reproduction traits in Vrindavani cattle using genome-wide SNP chip array data. In this study, 96 randomly chosen Vrindavani cows were genotyped using the Illumina Bovine50K BeadChip platform. A linear regression model of the genome-wide association study was fitted in the PLINK program between genome-wide SNP markers and reproduction traits, including age at first calving (AFC), inter-calving period (ICP), dry days (DD), and service period (SP) across the first three lactations. Information on different QTLs and genes, overlapping or adjacent to genomic coordinates of significant SNPs, was also mined from relevant databases in order to identify the biological pathways associated with reproductive traits in bovine. The Bonferroni correction resulted in total 39 SNP markers present on different chromosomes being identified that significantly affected the variation in AFC (6 SNPs), ICP (7 SNPs), DD (9 SNPs), and SP (17 SNPs). Novel potential candidate genes associated with reproductive traits that were identified using the GWAS methodology included UMPS, ITGB5, ADAM2, UPK1B, TEX55, bta-mir-708, TMPO, TDRD5, MAPRE2, PTER, AP3B1, DPP8, PLAT, TXN2, NDUFAF1, TGFA, DTNA, RSU1, KCNQ1, ADAM32, and CHST8. The significant SNPs and genes associated with the reproductive traits and the enriched genes may be exploited as candidate biomarkers in animal improvement programs, especially for improved reproduction performance in bovines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Munish Gangwar
- Animal Genetics Division, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnangar, Bareilly, 243122, India
| | - Subodh Kumar
- Animal Genetics Division, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnangar, Bareilly, 243122, India.
| | - Sheikh Firdous Ahmad
- Animal Genetics Division, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnangar, Bareilly, 243122, India
| | - Akansha Singh
- Animal Genetics Division, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnangar, Bareilly, 243122, India
| | - Swati Agrawal
- Animal Genetics Division, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnangar, Bareilly, 243122, India
| | - P L Anitta
- Animal Genetics Division, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnangar, Bareilly, 243122, India
| | - Amit Kumar
- Animal Genetics Division, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnangar, Bareilly, 243122, India
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Sarakul M, Elzo MA, Koonawootrittriron S, Suwanasopee T, Jattawa D, Laodim T. A comparison of five sets of overlapping and non-overlapping sliding windows for semen production traits in the Thai multibreed dairy population. Anim Biosci 2024; 37:428-436. [PMID: 37946424 PMCID: PMC10915195 DOI: 10.5713/ab.23.0230] [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: 06/21/2023] [Revised: 09/03/2023] [Accepted: 10/02/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE This study compared five distinct sets of biological pathways and associated genes related to semen volume (VOL), number of sperm (NS), and sperm motility (MOT) in the Thai multibreed dairy population. METHODS The phenotypic data included 13,533 VOL records, 12,773 NS records, and 12,660 MOT records from 131 bulls. The genotypic data consisted of 76,519 imputed and actual single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from 72 animals. The SNP additive genetic variances for VOL, NS, and MOT were estimated for SNP windows of one SNP (SW1), ten SNP (SW10), 30 SNP (SW30), 50 SNP (SW50), and 100 SNP (SW100) using a single-step genomic best linear unbiased prediction approach. The fixed effects in the model were contemporary group, ejaculate order, bull age, ambient temperature, and heterosis. The random effects accounted for animal additive genetic effects, permanent environment effects, and residual. The SNPs explaining at least 0.001% of the additive genetic variance in SW1, 0.01% in SW10, 0.03% in SW30, 0.05% in SW50, and 0.1% in SW100 were selected for gene identification through the NCBI database. The pathway analysis utilized genes associated with the identified SNP windows. RESULTS Comparison of overlapping and non-overlapping SNP windows revealed notable differences among the identified pathways and genes associated with the studied traits. Overlapping windows consistently yielded a larger number of shared biological pathways and genes than non-overlapping windows. In particular, overlapping SW30 and SW50 identified the largest number of shared pathways and genes in the Thai multibreed dairy population. CONCLUSION This study yielded valuable insights into the genetic architecture of VOL, NS, and MOT. It also highlighted the importance of assessing overlapping and non-overlapping SNP windows of various sizes for their effectiveness to identify shared pathways and genes influencing multiple traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mattaneeya Sarakul
- Department of Animal Science, Nakhon Phanom University, Nakhon Phanom, 48000,
Thailand
| | - Mauricio A. Elzo
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611-0910,
USA
| | | | | | - Danai Jattawa
- Department of Animal Science, Kasetsart University, Bangkok 10900,
Thailand
| | - Thawee Laodim
- Department of Animal Science, Kasetsart University, Kamphaeng Saen Campus, Nakhon Pathom 73140,
Thailand
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Illa SK, Mumtaz S, Nath S, Mukherjee S, Mukherjee A. Characterization of runs of Homozygosity revealed genomic inbreeding and patterns of selection in indigenous sahiwal cattle. J Appl Genet 2024; 65:167-180. [PMID: 38110827 DOI: 10.1007/s13353-023-00816-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2023] [Revised: 11/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/05/2023] [Indexed: 12/20/2023]
Abstract
Runs of homozygosity (ROH) are contiguous genomic regions, homozygous across all sites which arise in an individual due to the parents transmitting identical haplotypes to their offspring. The genetic improvement program of Sahiwal cattle after decades of selection needs re-assessment of breeding strategy and population phenomena. Hence, the present study was carried out to optimize input parameters in PLINK for ROH estimates, to explore ROH islands and assessment of pedigree and genome-based inbreeding in Sahiwal cattle. The sliding window approach with parameters standardized to define ROH for the specific population under study was used for the identification of runs. The optimum maximum gap, density, window-snp and window-threshold were 250 Kb, 120 Kb/SNP, 10, 0.05 respectively and ROH patterns were also characterized. ROH islands were defined as the short homozygous genomic regions shared by a large proportion of individuals in a population, containing significantly higher occurrences of ROH than the population specific threshold level. These were identified using the -homozyg-group function of the PLINK v1.9 program. Our results indicated that the Islands of ROH harbor a few candidate genes, ACAD11, RFX4, BANP, UBA5 that are associated with major economic traits. The average FPED (Pedigree based inbreeding coefficient), FROH (Genomic inbreeding coefficient), FHOM (Inbreeding estimated as the ratio of observed and expected homozygous genotypes), FGRM (Inbreeding estimated on genomic relationship method) and FGRM0.5 (Inbreeding estimated from the diagonal of a GRM with allele frequencies near to 0.5) were 0.009, 0.091, 0.035, -0.104 and -0.009, respectively. Our study revealed the optimum parameter setting in PLINK viz. maximal gaps between two SNPs, minimal density of SNPs in a segment (in kb/SNP) and scanning window size to identify ROH segments, which will enable ROH estimation more efficient and comparable across various SNP genotyping-based studies. The result further emphasized the significant role of genomics in unraveling population diversity, selection signatures and inbreeding in the ongoing Sahiwal breed improvement programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Satish Kumar Illa
- Livestock Research Station, Garividi, Sri Venkateswara Veterinary University, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh State, India
| | - Shabahat Mumtaz
- Animal Husbandry Department, Kolkata, West Bengal State, India
| | - Sapna Nath
- College of Veterinary Science, Garividi, Sri Venkateswara Veterinary University, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh State, India
| | - Sabyasachi Mukherjee
- Animal Genetics & Breeding Division, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)-National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI), Karnal, Haryana State, India.
| | - Anupama Mukherjee
- Animal Genetics & Breeding Division, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)-National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI), Karnal, Haryana State, India.
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Nayak SS, Panigrahi M, Rajawat D, Ghildiyal K, Sharma A, Parida S, Bhushan B, Mishra BP, Dutt T. Comprehensive selection signature analyses in dairy cattle exploiting purebred and crossbred genomic data. Mamm Genome 2023; 34:615-631. [PMID: 37843569 DOI: 10.1007/s00335-023-10021-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2023] [Accepted: 09/24/2023] [Indexed: 10/17/2023]
Abstract
The main objective of the current research was to locate, annotate, and highlight specific areas of the bovine genome that are undergoing intense positive selection. Here, we are analyzing selection signatures in crossbred (Bos taurus X Bos indicus), taurine (Bos taurus), and indicine (Bos indicus) cattle breeds. Indicine cattle breeds found throughout India are known for their higher heat tolerance and disease resilience. More breeds and more methods can provide a better understanding of the selection signature. So, we have worked on nine distinct cattle breeds utilizing seven different summary statistics, which is a fairly extensive approach. In this study, we carried out a thorough genome-wide investigation of selection signatures using bovine 50K SNP data. We have included the genotyped data of two taurine, two crossbreds, and five indicine cattle breeds, for a total of 320 animals. During the 1950s, these indicine (cebuine) cattle breeds were exported with the aim of enhancing the resilience of taurine breeds in Western countries. For this study, we employed seven summary statistics, including intra-population, i.e., Tajima's D, CLR, iHS, and ROH and inter-population statistics, i.e., FST, XP-EHH, and Rsb. The NCBI database, PANTHER 17.0, and CattleQTL database were used for annotation after finding the important areas under selection. Some genes, including EPHA6, CTNNA2, NPFFR2, HS6ST3, NPR3, KCNIP4, LIPK, SDCBP, CYP7A1, NSMAF, UBXN2B, UGDH, UBE2K, and DAB1, were shown to be shared by three or more different approaches. Therefore, it gives evidence of the most intense selection in these areas. These genes are mostly linked to milk production and adaptability traits. This study also reveals selection regions that contain genes which are crucial to numerous biological functions, including those associated with milk production, coat color, glucose metabolism, oxidative stress response, immunity and circadian rhythms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonali Sonejita Nayak
- Division of Animal Genetics, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, UP, 243122, India
| | - Manjit Panigrahi
- Division of Animal Genetics, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, UP, 243122, India.
| | - Divya Rajawat
- Division of Animal Genetics, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, UP, 243122, India
| | - Kanika Ghildiyal
- Division of Animal Genetics, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, UP, 243122, India
| | - Anurodh Sharma
- Division of Animal Genetics, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, UP, 243122, India
| | - Subhashree Parida
- Division of Pharmacology & Toxicology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, UP, 243122, India
| | - Bharat Bhushan
- Division of Animal Genetics, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, UP, 243122, India
| | - B P Mishra
- ICAR-National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources, Karnal, Haryana, 132001, India
| | - Triveni Dutt
- Livestock Production and Management Section, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, UP, 243122, India
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Gudra D, Valdovska A, Jonkus D, Galina D, Kairisa D, Ustinova M, Viksne K, Fridmanis D, Kalnina I. Genomic Characterization and Initial Insight into Mastitis-Associated SNP Profiles of Local Latvian Bos taurus Breeds. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:2776. [PMID: 37685039 PMCID: PMC10487150 DOI: 10.3390/ani13172776] [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: 07/26/2023] [Revised: 08/27/2023] [Accepted: 08/28/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Latvia has two local Bos taurus breeds-Latvian Brown (LBG) and Latvian Blue (LZG)-characterized by a good adaptation to the local climate, longevity, and high fat and protein contents in milk. Since these are desired traits in the dairy industry, this study investigated the genetic background of the LBG and LZG breeds and identified the genetic factors associated with mastitis. Blood and semen samples were acquired, and whole genome sequencing was then performed to acquire a genomic sequence with at least 35× or 10× coverage. The heterozygosity, nucleotide diversity, and LD analysis indicated that LBG and LZG cows have similar levels of genetic diversity compared to those of other breeds. An analysis of the population structure revealed that each breed clustered together, but the overall differentiation between the breeds was small. The highest genetic variance was observed in the LZG breed compared with the LBG breed. Our results show that SNP rs721295390 is associated with mastitis in the LBG breed, and SNPs rs383806754, chr29:43998719CG>C, and rs462030680 are associated with mastitis in the LZG breed. This study shows that local Latvian LBG and LZG breeds have a pronounced genetic differentiation, with each one suggesting its own mastitis-associated SNP profile.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dita Gudra
- Latvian Biomedical Research and Study Centre, LV-1067 Riga, Latvia; (D.G.); (M.U.); (K.V.); (D.F.)
| | - Anda Valdovska
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, LV-3001 Jelgava, Latvia
- Scientific Laboratory of Biotechnology, Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, LV-3001 Jelgava, Latvia
| | - Daina Jonkus
- Faculty of Agriculture, Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, LV-3001 Jelgava, Latvia (D.K.)
| | - Daiga Galina
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, LV-3001 Jelgava, Latvia
- Scientific Laboratory of Biotechnology, Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, LV-3001 Jelgava, Latvia
| | - Daina Kairisa
- Faculty of Agriculture, Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, LV-3001 Jelgava, Latvia (D.K.)
| | - Maija Ustinova
- Latvian Biomedical Research and Study Centre, LV-1067 Riga, Latvia; (D.G.); (M.U.); (K.V.); (D.F.)
| | - Kristine Viksne
- Latvian Biomedical Research and Study Centre, LV-1067 Riga, Latvia; (D.G.); (M.U.); (K.V.); (D.F.)
- Scientific Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, Riga Stradins University, LV-1007 Riga, Latvia
| | - Davids Fridmanis
- Latvian Biomedical Research and Study Centre, LV-1067 Riga, Latvia; (D.G.); (M.U.); (K.V.); (D.F.)
| | - Ineta Kalnina
- Latvian Biomedical Research and Study Centre, LV-1067 Riga, Latvia; (D.G.); (M.U.); (K.V.); (D.F.)
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Marrella MA, Biase FH. A multi-omics analysis identifies molecular features associated with fertility in heifers (Bos taurus). Sci Rep 2023; 13:12664. [PMID: 37542054 PMCID: PMC10403585 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-39858-0] [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: 04/25/2023] [Accepted: 08/01/2023] [Indexed: 08/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Infertility or subfertility is a critical barrier to sustainable cattle production, including in heifers. The development of heifers that do not produce a calf within an optimum window of time is a critical factor for the profitability and sustainability of the cattle industry. In parallel, heifers are an excellent biomedical model for understanding the underlying etiology of infertility because well-nourished heifers can still be infertile, mostly because of inherent physiological and genetic causes. Using a high-density single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) chip, we collected genotypic data, which were analyzed using an association analysis in PLINK with Fisher's exact test. We also produced quantitative transcriptome data and proteome data. Transcriptome data were analyzed using the quasi-likelihood test followed by the Wald's test, and the likelihood test and proteome data were analyzed using a generalized mixed model and Student's t-test. We identified two SNPs significantly associated with heifer fertility (rs110918927, chr12: 85648422, P = 6.7 × 10-7; and rs109366560, chr11:37666527, P = 2.6 × 10-5). We identified two genes with differential transcript abundance (eFDR ≤ 0.002) between the two groups (Fertile and Sub-Fertile): Adipocyte Plasma Membrane Associated Protein (APMAP, 1.16 greater abundance in the Fertile group) and Dynein Axonemal Intermediate Chain 7 (DNAI7, 1.23 greater abundance in the Sub-Fertile group). Our analysis revealed that the protein Alpha-ketoglutarate-dependent dioxygenase FTO was more abundant in the plasma collected from Fertile heifers relative to their Sub-Fertile counterparts (FDR < 0.05). Lastly, an integrative analysis of the three datasets identified a series of molecular features (SNPs, gene transcripts, and proteins) that discriminated 21 out of 22 heifers correctly based on their fertility category. Our multi-omics analyses confirm the complex nature of female fertility. Very importantly, our results also highlight differences in the molecular profile of heifers associated with fertility that transcend the constraints of breed-specific genetic background.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mackenzie A Marrella
- School of Animal Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Fernando H Biase
- School of Animal Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA, USA.
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9
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Id-Lahoucine S, Casellas J, Miglior F, Schenkel FS, Cánovas A. Parent-offspring genotyped trios unravelling genomic regions with gametic and genotypic epistatic transmission bias on the cattle genome. Front Genet 2023; 14:1132796. [PMID: 37091801 PMCID: PMC10117652 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2023.1132796] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2022] [Accepted: 03/20/2023] [Indexed: 04/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Several biological mechanisms affecting the sperm and ova fertility and viability at developmental stages of the reproductive cycle resulted in observable transmission ratio distortion (i.e., deviation from Mendelian expectations). Gene-by-gene interactions (or epistasis) could also potentially cause specific transmission ratio distortion patterns at different loci as unfavorable allelic combinations are under-represented, exhibiting deviation from Mendelian proportions. Here, we aimed to detect pairs of loci with epistatic transmission ratio distortion using 283,817 parent-offspring genotyped trios (sire-dam-offspring) of Holstein cattle. Allelic and genotypic parameterization for epistatic transmission ratio distortion were developed and implemented to scan the whole genome. Different epistatic transmission ratio distortion patterns were observed. Using genotypic models, 7, 19 and 6 pairs of genomic regions were found with decisive evidence with additive-by-additive, additive-by-dominance/dominance-by-additive and dominance-by-dominance effects, respectively. Using the allelic transmission ratio distortion model, more insight was gained in understanding the penetrance of single-locus distortions, revealing 17 pairs of SNPs. Scanning for the depletion of individuals carrying pairs of homozygous genotypes for unlinked loci, revealed 56 pairs of SNPs with recessive epistatic transmission ratio distortion patterns. The maximum number of expected homozygous offspring, with none of them observed, was 23. Finally, in this study, we identified candidate genomic regions harboring epistatic interactions with potential biological implications in economically important traits, such as reproduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samir Id-Lahoucine
- Centre for Genetic Improvement of Livestock, Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
| | - Joaquim Casellas
- Departament de Ciència Animal i dels Aliments, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Filippo Miglior
- Centre for Genetic Improvement of Livestock, Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
| | - Flavio S. Schenkel
- Centre for Genetic Improvement of Livestock, Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
| | - Angela Cánovas
- Centre for Genetic Improvement of Livestock, Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
- *Correspondence: Angela Cánovas,
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Zare M, Atashi H, Hostens M. Genome-Wide Association Study for Lactation Performance in the Early and Peak Stages of Lactation in Holstein Dairy Cows. Animals (Basel) 2022; 12:ani12121541. [PMID: 35739877 PMCID: PMC9219502 DOI: 10.3390/ani12121541] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2022] [Revised: 05/27/2022] [Accepted: 06/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Although genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have been carried out within a variety of cattle breeds, they are mainly based on the accumulated 305-day lactation yield traits estimated by summing the test-day recorded every day during the lactation period, or combining the weekly or monthly test-day records by linear interpolation. Since the additive genetic variance for milk yield and composition changes during lactation, the genetic effects of QTL related to these traits are not constant during the lactation period. Therefore, a better understanding of the genetic architecture of milk production traits in different lactation stages (e.g., beginning, peak, and end stages of lactation) is needed. The aim of this study was to detect genomic loci associated with lactation performance during 9 to 50 days in milk (DIM) in Holstein dairy cows. Candidate genes identified for milk production traits showed contrasting results between the EARLY and PEAK stages of lactation. Based on the results of this study, it can be concluded that in any genomic study it should be taken into account that the genetic effects of genes related to the lactation performance are not constant during the lactation period. Abstract This study aimed to detect genomic loci associated with the lactation performance during 9 to 50 days in milk (DIM) in Holstein dairy cows. Daily milk yield (MY), fat yield (FY), and protein yield (PY) during 9 to 50 DIM were recorded on 134 multiparous Holstein dairy cows distributed in four research herds. Fat- and protein-corrected milk (FPCM), fat-corrected milk (FCM), and energy-corrected milk (ECM) were predicted. The records collected during 9 to 25 DIM were put into the early stage of lactation (EARLY) and those collected during 26 to 50 DIM were put into the peak stage of lactation (PEAK). Then, the mean of traits in each cow included in each lactation stage (EARLY and PEAK) were estimated and used as phenotypic observations for the genome-wide association study. The included animals were genotyped with the Illumina BovineHD Genotyping BeadChip (Illumina Inc., San Diego, CA, USA) for a total of 777,962 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). After quality control, 585,109 variants were analyzed using GEMMA software in a mixed linear model. Although there was no SNP associated with traits included at the 5% genome-wide significance threshold, 18 SNPs were identified to be associated with milk yield and composition at the suggestive genome-wide significance threshold. Candidate genes identified for milk production traits showed contrasting results between the EARLY and PEAK stages of lactation. This suggests that differential sets of candidate genes underlie the phenotypic expression of the considered traits in the EARLY and PEAK stages of lactation. Although further functional studies are needed to validate our findings in independent populations, it can be concluded that in any genomic study it should be taken into account that the genetic effects of genes related to the lactation performance are not constant during the lactation period.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mahsa Zare
- Department of Animal Science, Shiraz University, Shiraz 7144113131, Iran; (M.Z.); (H.A.)
| | - Hadi Atashi
- Department of Animal Science, Shiraz University, Shiraz 7144113131, Iran; (M.Z.); (H.A.)
| | - Miel Hostens
- Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Utrecht, Yalelaan 7, 3584 CL Utrecht, The Netherlands
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +31-30-253-1820
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11
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Chen SY, Schenkel FS, Melo ALP, Oliveira HR, Pedrosa VB, Araujo AC, Melka MG, Brito LF. Identifying pleiotropic variants and candidate genes for fertility and reproduction traits in Holstein cattle via association studies based on imputed whole-genome sequence genotypes. BMC Genomics 2022; 23:331. [PMID: 35484513 PMCID: PMC9052698 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-022-08555-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2021] [Accepted: 04/12/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Genetic progress for fertility and reproduction traits in dairy cattle has been limited due to the low heritability of most indicator traits. Moreover, most of the quantitative trait loci (QTL) and candidate genes associated with these traits remain unknown. In this study, we used 5.6 million imputed DNA sequence variants (single nucleotide polymorphisms, SNPs) for genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of 18 fertility and reproduction traits in Holstein cattle. Aiming to identify pleiotropic variants and increase detection power, multiple-trait analyses were performed using a method to efficiently combine the estimated SNP effects of single-trait GWAS based on a chi-square statistic. Results There were 87, 72, and 84 significant SNPs identified for heifer, cow, and sire traits, respectively, which showed a wide and distinct distribution across the genome, suggesting that they have relatively distinct polygenic nature. The biological functions of immune response and fatty acid metabolism were significantly enriched for the 184 and 124 positional candidate genes identified for heifer and cow traits, respectively. No known biological function was significantly enriched for the 147 positional candidate genes found for sire traits. The most important chromosomes that had three or more significant QTL identified are BTA22 and BTA23 for heifer traits, BTA8 and BTA17 for cow traits, and BTA4, BTA7, BTA17, BTA22, BTA25, and BTA28 for sire traits. Several novel and biologically important positional candidate genes were strongly suggested for heifer (SOD2, WTAP, DLEC1, PFKFB4, TRIM27, HECW1, DNAH17, and ADAM3A), cow (ANXA1, PCSK5, SPESP1, and JMJD1C), and sire (ELMO1, CFAP70, SOX30, DGCR8, SEPTIN14, PAPOLB, JMJD1C, and NELL2) traits. Conclusions These findings contribute to better understand the underlying biological mechanisms of fertility and reproduction traits measured in heifers, cows, and sires, which may contribute to improve genomic evaluation for these traits in dairy cattle. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12864-022-08555-z.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shi-Yi Chen
- Department of Animal Sciences, Purdue University, 270 S. Russell Street, West Lafayette, IN, 47907-2041, USA.,Farm Animal Genetic Resources Exploration and Innovation Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, Sichuan, China
| | - Flavio S Schenkel
- Centre for Genetic Improvement of Livestock, Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Ana L P Melo
- Department of Reproduction and Animal Evaluation, Rural Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Seropédica, RJ, 23897-000, Brazil
| | - Hinayah R Oliveira
- Department of Animal Sciences, Purdue University, 270 S. Russell Street, West Lafayette, IN, 47907-2041, USA.,Centre for Genetic Improvement of Livestock, Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Victor B Pedrosa
- Department of Animal Sciences, Purdue University, 270 S. Russell Street, West Lafayette, IN, 47907-2041, USA.,Department of Animal Sciences, State University of Ponta Grossa, Ponta Grossa, PR, 84030-900, Brazil
| | - Andre C Araujo
- Department of Animal Sciences, Purdue University, 270 S. Russell Street, West Lafayette, IN, 47907-2041, USA
| | - Melkaye G Melka
- Department of Animal and Food Science, University of Wisconsin River Falls, River Falls, WI, 54022, USA
| | - Luiz F Brito
- Department of Animal Sciences, Purdue University, 270 S. Russell Street, West Lafayette, IN, 47907-2041, USA. .,Centre for Genetic Improvement of Livestock, Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada.
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12
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Rajawat D, Panigrahi M, Kumar H, Nayak SS, Parida S, Bhushan B, Gaur GK, Dutt T, Mishra BP. Identification of important genomic footprints using eight different selection signature statistics in domestic cattle breeds. Gene 2022; 816:146165. [PMID: 35026292 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2021.146165] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2021] [Revised: 12/13/2021] [Accepted: 12/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
In the present study, the population genomic data of different cattle breeds were explored to decipher the genomic regions affected due to selective events and reflected in the productive, reproductive, thermo-tolerance, and health-related traits. To find out these genomic deviations due to selective sweeps, we used eight different statistical tools (Tajima's D, Fu & Li's D*, CLR, ROH, iHS, FST, FLK, and hapFLK) on seven indigenous and five exotic cattle breeds. We further performed composite analysis by comparing their covariance matrix. Several candidate genes were found to be related to milk production (ADARB, WDR70, and CA8), reproductive (PARN, FAM134B2, and ZBTB20), and health-related traits (SP110, CXCL2, CLXCL3, CXCL5, IRF8, and MYOM1). The outcome of this investigation provides a basis for detecting selective sweeps that explain the genetic variation of traits. They may possess functional importance for multiple cattle breeds in different subcontinents. However, further studies are required to improve the findings using high-density arrays or whole-genome sequencing with higher resolution and greater sample sizes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Divya Rajawat
- Division of Animal Genetics, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly 243122, UP, India
| | - Manjit Panigrahi
- Division of Animal Genetics, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly 243122, UP, India.
| | - Harshit Kumar
- Division of Animal Genetics, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly 243122, UP, India
| | - Sonali Sonejita Nayak
- Division of Animal Genetics, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly 243122, UP, India
| | - Subhashree Parida
- Division of Pharmacology & Toxicology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly 243122, UP, India
| | - Bharat Bhushan
- Division of Animal Genetics, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly 243122, UP, India
| | - G K Gaur
- Division of Animal Genetics, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly 243122, UP, India
| | - Triveni Dutt
- Livestock Production and Management Section, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly 243122, UP, India
| | - B P Mishra
- Division of Animal Biotechnology, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly 243122, UP, India
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13
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Fathoni A, Boonkum W, Chankitisakul V, Duangjinda M. An Appropriate Genetic Approach for Improving Reproductive Traits in Crossbred Thai-Holstein Cattle under Heat Stress Conditions. Vet Sci 2022; 9:vetsci9040163. [PMID: 35448661 PMCID: PMC9031002 DOI: 10.3390/vetsci9040163] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2022] [Revised: 03/19/2022] [Accepted: 03/26/2022] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Thailand is a tropical country affected by global climate change and has high temperatures and humidity that cause heat stress in livestock. A temperature−humidity index (THI) is required to assess and evaluate heat stress levels in livestock. One of the livestock types in Thailand experiencing heat stress due to extreme climate change is crossbred dairy cattle. Genetic evaluations of heat tolerance in dairy cattle have been carried out for reproductive traits. Heritability values for reproductive traits are generally low (<0.10) because environmental factors heavily influence them. Consequently, genetic improvement for these traits would be slow compared to production traits. Positive and negative genetic correlations were found between reproductive traits and reproductive traits and yield traits. Several selection methods for reproductive traits have been introduced, i.e., the traditional method, marker-assisted selection (MAS), and genomic selection (GS). GS is the most promising technique and provides accurate results with a high genetic gain. Single-step genomic BLUP (ssGBLUP) has higher accuracy than the multi-step equivalent for fertility traits or low-heritability traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akhmad Fathoni
- Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen 40002, Thailand; (A.F.); (W.B.); (V.C.)
- Department of Animal Breeding and Reproduction, Faculty of Animal Science, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta 55281, Indonesia
| | - Wuttigrai Boonkum
- Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen 40002, Thailand; (A.F.); (W.B.); (V.C.)
- Network Center for Animal Breeding and OMICS Research, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen 40002, Thailand
| | - Vibuntita Chankitisakul
- Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen 40002, Thailand; (A.F.); (W.B.); (V.C.)
- Network Center for Animal Breeding and OMICS Research, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen 40002, Thailand
| | - Monchai Duangjinda
- Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen 40002, Thailand; (A.F.); (W.B.); (V.C.)
- Network Center for Animal Breeding and OMICS Research, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen 40002, Thailand
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +66-81-872-4207
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14
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Liu SH, Ma XY, Hassan FU, Gao TY, Deng TX. Genome-wide analysis of runs of homozygosity in Italian Mediterranean buffalo. J Dairy Sci 2022; 105:4324-4334. [PMID: 35307184 DOI: 10.3168/jds.2021-21543] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2021] [Accepted: 02/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Runs of homozygosity (ROH) are a powerful tool to explore patterns of genomic inbreeding in animal populations and detect signatures of selection. The present study used ROH analysis to evaluate the genome-wide patterns of homozygosity, inbreeding levels, and distribution of ROH islands using the SNP data sets from 899 Mediterranean buffaloes. A total of 42,433 ROH segments were identified, with an average of 47.20 segments per individual. The ROH comprising mostly shorter segments (1-4 Mb) accounted for approximately 72.29% of all ROH. In contrast, the larger ROH (>8 Mb) class accounted for only 7.97% of all ROH segments. Estimated inbreeding coefficients from ROH (FROH) ranged from 0.0201 to 0.0371. Pearson correlations between FROH and genomic relationship matrix increased with the increase of ROH length. We identified ROH hotspots in 12 genomic regions, located on chromosomes 1, 2, 3, 5, 17, and 19, harboring a total of 122 genes. Protein-protein interaction (PPI) analysis revealed the clustering of these genes into 7 PPI networks. Many genes located in these regions were associated with different production traits. In addition, 5 ROH islands overlapped with cattle quantitative trait loci that were mainly associated with milk traits. These findings revealed the genome-wide autozygosity patterns and inbreeding levels in Mediterranean buffalo. Our study identified many candidate genes related to production traits that could be used to assist in selective breeding for genetic improvement of buffalo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shen-He Liu
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450046, China.
| | - Xiao-Ya Ma
- Guangxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Buffalo Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction Technology, Buffalo Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanning 530001, China
| | - Faiz-Ul Hassan
- Institute of Animal and Dairy Sciences, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad 38040, Pakistan
| | - Teng-Yun Gao
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450046, China
| | - Ting-Xian Deng
- Guangxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Buffalo Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction Technology, Buffalo Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanning 530001, China.
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15
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Pereira G, Guo Y, Silva E, Bevilacqua C, Charpigny G, Lopes-da-Costa L, Humblot P. Progesterone differentially affects the transcriptomic profiles of cow endometrial cell types. BMC Genomics 2022; 23:82. [PMID: 35086476 PMCID: PMC8793221 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-022-08323-z] [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: 09/06/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The endometrium is a heterogeneous tissue composed of luminal epithelial (LE), glandular epithelial (GE), and stromal cells (ST), experiencing progesterone regulated dynamic changes during the estrous cycle. In the cow, this regulation at the transcriptomic level was only evaluated in the whole tissue. This study describes specific gene expression in the three types of cells isolated from endometrial biopsies following laser capture microdissection and the transcriptome changes induced by progesterone in GE and ST cells. Results Endometrial LE, GE, and ST cells show specific transcriptomic profiles. Most of the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in response to progesterone are cell type-specific (96%). Genes involved in cell cycle and nuclear division are under-expressed in the presence of progesterone in GE, highlighting the anti-proliferative action of progesterone in epithelial cells. Elevated progesterone concentrations are also associated with the under-expression of estrogen receptor 1 (ESR1) in GE and oxytocin receptor (OXTR) in GE and ST cells. In ST cells, transcription factors such as SOX17 and FOXA2, known to regulate uterine epithelial-stromal cross-talk conveying to endometrial receptivity, are over-expressed under progesterone influence. Conclusions The results from this study show that progesterone regulates endometrial function in a cell type-specific way, which is independent of the expression of its main receptor PGR. These novel insights into uterine physiology present the cell compartment as the physiological unit rather than the whole tissue. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12864-022-08323-z.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gonçalo Pereira
- CIISA-Centro de Investigação Interdisciplinar em Sanidade Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade de Lisboa, Avenida da Universidade Técnica, 1300-477, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Yongzhi Guo
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, SLU, PO Box 7054, 750 07, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Elisabete Silva
- CIISA-Centro de Investigação Interdisciplinar em Sanidade Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade de Lisboa, Avenida da Universidade Técnica, 1300-477, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Claudia Bevilacqua
- Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, GABI, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Gilles Charpigny
- Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, ENVA, BREED, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Luís Lopes-da-Costa
- CIISA-Centro de Investigação Interdisciplinar em Sanidade Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade de Lisboa, Avenida da Universidade Técnica, 1300-477, Lisbon, Portugal.
| | - Patrice Humblot
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, SLU, PO Box 7054, 750 07, Uppsala, Sweden
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16
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Deng TX, Ma XY, Lu XR, Duan AQ, Shokrollahi B, Shang JH. Signatures of selection reveal candidate genes involved in production traits in Chinese crossbred buffaloes. J Dairy Sci 2021; 105:1327-1337. [PMID: 34955275 DOI: 10.3168/jds.2021-21102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2021] [Accepted: 11/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Identification of selection signature is important for a better understanding of genetic mechanisms that affect phenotypic differentiation in livestock. However, the genome-wide selection responses have not been investigated for the production traits of Chinese crossbred buffaloes. In this study, an SNP data set of 133 buffaloes (Chinese crossbred buffalo, n = 45; Chinese local swamp buffalo, n = 88) was collected from the Dryad Digital Repository database (https://datadryad.org/stash/). Population genetics analysis showed that these buffaloes were divided into the following 2 groups: crossbred buffalo and swamp buffalo. The crossbred group had higher genetic diversity than the swamp group. Using 3 complementary statistical methods (integrated haplotype score, cross population extended haplotype homozygosity, and composite likelihood ratio), a total of 31 candidate selection regions were identified in the Chinese crossbred population. Here, within these candidate regions, 25 genes were under the putative selection. Among them, several candidate genes were reported to be associated with production traits. In addition, we identified 13 selection regions that overlapped with bovine QTLs that were mainly involved in milk production and composition traits. These results can provide useful insights regarding the selection response for production traits of Chinese crossbred buffalo, as identified candidate genes influence production performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- T X Deng
- Key Laboratory of Buffalo Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction Technology, Buffalo Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanning 530001, China.
| | - X Y Ma
- Key Laboratory of Buffalo Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction Technology, Buffalo Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanning 530001, China
| | - X R Lu
- Key Laboratory of Buffalo Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction Technology, Buffalo Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanning 530001, China
| | - A Q Duan
- Key Laboratory of Buffalo Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction Technology, Buffalo Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanning 530001, China
| | - Borhan Shokrollahi
- Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Sanandaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Sanandaj, Iran 5595-73919
| | - J H Shang
- Key Laboratory of Buffalo Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction Technology, Buffalo Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanning 530001, China.
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Crum TE, Schnabel RD, Decker JE, Taylor JF. Taurine and Indicine Haplotype Representation in Advanced Generation Individuals From Three American Breeds. Front Genet 2021; 12:758394. [PMID: 34733318 PMCID: PMC8558500 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2021.758394] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2021] [Accepted: 09/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Development of the American Breeds of beef cattle began in the 1920s as breeders and U. S. Experiment Station researchers began to create Bos taurus taurus × Bos taurus indicus hybrids using Brahman as the B. t. indicus source. By 1954, U.S. Breed Associations had been formed for Brangus (5/8 Angus × 3/8 Brahman), Beefmaster (½ Brahman × ¼ Shorthorn × ¼ Hereford), and Santa Gertrudis (5/8 Shorthorn × 3/8 Brahman). While these breeds were developed using mating designs expected to create base generation animals with the required genome contributions from progenitor breeds, each association has now registered advanced generation animals in which selection or drift may have caused the realized genome compositions to differ from initial expected proportions. The availability of high-density SNP genotypes for 9,161 Brangus, 3,762 Beefmaster, and 1,942 Santa Gertrudis animals allowed us to compare the realized genomic architectures of breed members to the base generation expectations. We used RFMix to estimate local ancestry and identify genomic regions in which the proportion of Brahman ancestry differed significantly from a priori expectations. For all three breeds, lower than expected levels of Brahman composition were found genome-wide, particularly in early-generation animals where we demonstrate that selection on beef production traits was likely responsible for the taurine enrichment. Using a proxy for generation number, we also contrasted the genomes of early- and advanced-generation animals and found that the indicine composition of the genome has increased with generation number likely due to selection on adaptive traits. Many of the most-highly differentiated genomic regions were breed specific, suggesting that differences in breeding objectives and selection intensities exist between the breeds. Global ancestry estimation is commonly performed in admixed animals to control for stratification in association studies. However, local ancestry estimation provides the opportunity to investigate the evolution of specific chromosomal segments and estimate haplotype effects on trait variation in admixed individuals. Investigating the genomic architecture of the American Breeds not only allows the estimation of indicine and taurine genome proportions genome-wide, but also the locations within the genome where either taurine or indicine alleles confer a selective advantage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tamar E Crum
- Division of Animal Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, United States
| | - Robert D Schnabel
- Division of Animal Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, United States.,Informatics Institute, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, United States
| | - Jared E Decker
- Division of Animal Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, United States.,Informatics Institute, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, United States
| | - Jeremy F Taylor
- Division of Animal Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, United States
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18
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Dubon MAC, Pedrosa VB, Feitosa FLB, Costa RB, de Camargo GMF, Silva MR, Pinto LFB. Identification of novel candidate genes for age at first calving in Nellore cows using a SNP chip specifically developed for Bos taurus indicus cattle. Theriogenology 2021; 173:156-162. [PMID: 34392169 DOI: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2021.08.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2021] [Revised: 08/06/2021] [Accepted: 08/07/2021] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
The age at first calving has a great economic impact on the beef cattle system and calving at 24 months is an objective of selection for a more efficient herd. However, an age at first calving around 36 months has been observed for Nellore cattle in Brazil. Thus, a genome-wide association study (GWAS) was carried out with 8376 records of age at first calving and 3239 animals genotyped with the GGP-Indicus 35K, which has been developed specifically for Bos taurus indicus. The weighted single-step genomic best linear unbiased prediction method was used, with adjacent SNPs (single nucleotide polymorphisms) in genomic windows of 1.0 Mb. After quality control, 3239 (2161 males and 1078 females) animals genotyped for 30,519 SNPs were used in GWAS analysis. The average and standard deviation of age at first calving were 1041.7 and 140.6 days, respectively. The heritability estimate was 0.10 ± 0.02. The GWAS analysis found seven genomic regions in BTA1, 2, 5, 12, 18, 21, and 24, which explained a total of 11.24% of the additive genetic variance of age at first calving. In these regions were found 62 protein coding genes, and the genes HSD17B2, SERPINA14, SERPINA1, SERPINA5, STAT1, NFATC1, ATP9B, CTDP1, THPO, ECE2, PSMD2, EIF4G1, EIF2B2, DVL3, POLR2H, TMTC2, and GPC6 are possible candidates for age at first birth due their function. Moreover, two molecular functions ("serine-type endopeptidase inhibitor activity" and "negative regulation of endopeptidase activity") were significant, which depend on several serpin genes. The use of a SNP chip developed especially for Bos taurus indicus allowed to find genomic regions for age at first calving, which are close to QTLs previously reported for other reproduction-related traits. Future studies can reveal the causal variants and their effects on reproductive precocity of Nellore cows.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Victor Breno Pedrosa
- State University of Ponta Grossa, 4748, Av. General Carlos Cavalcanti, Ponta Grossa, PR, 84030900, Brazil.
| | | | - Raphael Bermal Costa
- Federal University of Bahia, 500, Av. Adhemar de Barros, Salvador, BA, 40170110, Brazil.
| | | | - Marcio Ribeiro Silva
- Melhore Animal and Katayama Agropecuaria Lda, Guararapes, SP, 16700-000, Brazil.
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Zheng J, Deng T, Jiang E, Li J, Wijayanti D, Wang Y, Ding X, Lan X. Genetic variations of bovine PCOS-related DENND1A gene identified in GWAS significantly affect female reproductive traits. Gene 2021; 802:145867. [PMID: 34352299 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2021.145867] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2021] [Revised: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 07/30/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified DENND1A as a potential candidate gene linked to the fertility-related phenotypes in dairy cows. However, to date, no studies have examined the association of the DENND1A insertion/deletions (indels) to bovine fertility on a large scale. Herein, two indel sites, including P4-del-26-bp and P8-ins-15-bp were identified in 1064 Holstein cows. The values of the minor allelic frequency (MAF) ranged between 0.471 (deletion) and 0.230 (deletion), respectively, and combined four different haplotypes by analyzing the haplotype combination. It is noteworthy that P4-del-26-bp is associated with the ovarian width (P = 0.0004) and corpus luteum diameter (P = 0.004). Meanwhile, P8-ins-15-bp was found to have a significant association with the ovarian width (P = 0.020), ovarian weight (P = 0.004), the number of mature follicles (P = 0.020), and diameter of the mature follicles (P = 0.016). Furthermore, the combinatorial analysis showed that the two indel combined-genotypes were significantly related to several reproductive traits (ovarian width, ovarian weight, etc.). Collectively, our findings indicated that these two novel indels and their combinations are correlated with the reproductive traits, and hence, they can serve in the marker-assisted selection (MAS) in cattle breeding. Nevertheless, further functional experiments are needed for understanding the mechanisms of these indels in cattle reproduction in a better way.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juanshan Zheng
- Key Laboratory of Yak Breeding Engineering, Lanzhou Institute of Husbandry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou 730050, China; Laboratory of Animal Genome and Gene Function, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China
| | - Tianyu Deng
- Laboratory of Animal Genome and Gene Function, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China
| | - Enhui Jiang
- Laboratory of Animal Genome and Gene Function, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China
| | - Jie Li
- Laboratory of Animal Genome and Gene Function, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China
| | - Dwi Wijayanti
- Laboratory of Animal Genome and Gene Function, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China
| | - Yongsheng Wang
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China
| | - Xuezhi Ding
- Key Laboratory of Yak Breeding Engineering, Lanzhou Institute of Husbandry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou 730050, China.
| | - Xianyong Lan
- Laboratory of Animal Genome and Gene Function, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China.
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Misztal I, Aguilar I, Lourenco D, Ma L, Steibel JP, Toro M. Emerging issues in genomic selection. J Anim Sci 2021; 99:skab092. [PMID: 33773494 PMCID: PMC8186541 DOI: 10.1093/jas/skab092] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2021] [Accepted: 03/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Genomic selection (GS) is now practiced successfully across many species. However, many questions remain, such as long-term effects, estimations of genomic parameters, robustness of genome-wide association study (GWAS) with small and large datasets, and stability of genomic predictions. This study summarizes presentations from the authors at the 2020 American Society of Animal Science (ASAS) symposium. The focus of many studies until now is on linkage disequilibrium between two loci. Ignoring higher-level equilibrium may lead to phantom dominance and epistasis. The Bulmer effect leads to a reduction of the additive variance; however, the selection for increased recombination rate can release anew genetic variance. With genomic information, estimates of genetic parameters may be biased by genomic preselection, but costs of estimation can increase drastically due to the dense form of the genomic information. To make the computation of estimates feasible, genotypes could be retained only for the most important animals, and methods of estimation should use algorithms that can recognize dense blocks in sparse matrices. GWASs using small genomic datasets frequently find many marker-trait associations, whereas studies using much bigger datasets find only a few. Most of the current tools use very simple models for GWAS, possibly causing artifacts. These models are adequate for large datasets where pseudo-phenotypes such as deregressed proofs indirectly account for important effects for traits of interest. Artifacts arising in GWAS with small datasets can be minimized by using data from all animals (whether genotyped or not), realistic models, and methods that account for population structure. Recent developments permit the computation of P-values from genomic best linear unbiased prediction (GBLUP), where models can be arbitrarily complex but restricted to genotyped animals only, and single-step GBLUP that also uses phenotypes from ungenotyped animals. Stability was an important part of nongenomic evaluations, where genetic predictions were stable in the absence of new data even with low prediction accuracies. Unfortunately, genomic evaluations for such animals change because all animals with genotypes are connected. A top-ranked animal can easily drop in the next evaluation, causing a crisis of confidence in genomic evaluations. While correlations between consecutive genomic evaluations are high, outliers can have differences as high as 1 SD. A solution to fluctuating genomic evaluations is to base selection decisions on groups of animals. Although many issues in GS have been solved, many new issues that require additional research continue to surface.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ignacy Misztal
- Department of Animal and Dairy Science, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
| | - Ignacio Aguilar
- Instituto Nacional de Investigación Agropecuaria (INIA), 90200 Canelones, Uruguay
| | - Daniela Lourenco
- Department of Animal and Dairy Science, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
| | - Li Ma
- Department of Animal and Avian Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - Juan Pedro Steibel
- Department of Animal Science, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
| | - Miguel Toro
- Departamento de Producción Agraria, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
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