| “Study of some important genes for coat color in the Iranian Markhoz goat” |
| Paper ID : 1064-WDG2017 |
| Authors |
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Anahit Nazari Ghadikolaei *1, Seyed Reza Miraei Ashtiani2, Hassan Mehrabani Yeganeh3, Amir Rashidi4, Elizabeth Ann Staiger5, Heather Jay Huson6 1Mesbah, Karaj, Agriculture and Natrural resources, university of Tehran, department of animal science 2Professor of Department of Animal Science , Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran 3Associate Professor of Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran 4Professor of Department of Animal Science, College of Agriculture Engineering, University of Kurdistan, Karaj, Iran 5Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Animal Science of Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA 6Assistant Professor of Department of Animal Science , Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA |
| Abstract |
| The Markhoz goat is one of the most valuable breeds in Iran due to their coat color variation including multiple shades of brown, but black to white and rarely grey. This color variation is unique among mohair-producing (Angora) breeds which are predominantly white in color. As the Markhoz goat is the only mohair- producing breed in Iran, coat color is particularly important for the mohair industry specifically traditional Kurdish cloths. Thus, we performed genome- wide association studies (GWAS) for the brown and black coat colors. A total of 220 Markhoz goats were genetically characterized for over 53K single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) spanning the genome using the Illumina Caprine high-density beadchip. We used the Efficient Mixed Model Analysis (EMMAX) algorithm correcting for animal relatedness and population structure by employing a genomic kinship matrix. Several SNPs were detected close to or within known putative candidate genes effecting for coat color. The most promising genes included RALY and ITCH genes on chromosome 13 for brown and black animals. This is the first genome-wide study for coat color in the Markhoz goat breed identifying candidate genes and providing a foundation for further study to validate the role of these genes and identify causal mutations regulating coat color in goats. |
| Keywords |
| Markhoz goat, GWAS, coat color |
| Status: Abstract Accepted (Poster Presentation) |