title: Verification of the identity of bovine semen using DNA microsatellite markers.
abstract: Over the past 30 years cattle have been identified by blood typing, but recently the use of DNA markers has provided a more precise method of identifying individuals and verifying their parentage. This article describes the use of microsatellite-based DNA markers for confirming the identity of semen, as part of the evidence presented in a legal dispute. Two panels of markers and two methods for identifying allelic variation are compared; for both approaches the likelihood of finding two Charolais individuals with the same genotype was less than one in a million. Animals can therefore be identified conclusively from DNA samples, a technique which could be of use when their identity is in dispute.
authors.affiliation: Roslin Institute, Edinburgh, Midlothian.
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: A P
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Usha
authors.forename: B G
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Urquhart
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kilroy
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D000823:Animal Identification Systems; D000818:Animals; D001345:Autoradiography; D002417:Cattle; D005819:Genetic Markers; D005838:Genotype; D008297:Male; D010334:Paternity; D011336:Probability; D012661:Semen
chemical_list: D005819:Genetic Markers