title: Genome-wide mapping of loci explaining variance in scrotal circumference in Nellore cattle.
abstract: The reproductive performance of bulls has a high impact on the beef cattle industry. Scrotal circumference (SC) is the most recorded reproductive trait in beef herds, and is used as a major selection criterion to improve precocity and fertility. The characterization of genomic regions affecting SC can contribute to the identification of diagnostic markers for reproductive performance and uncover molecular mechanisms underlying complex aspects of bovine reproductive biology. In this paper, we report a genome-wide scan for chromosome segments explaining differences in SC, using data of 861 Nellore bulls (Bos indicus) genotyped for over 777,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms. Loci that excel from the genome background were identified on chromosomes 4, 6, 7, 10, 14, 18 and 21. The majority of these regions were previously found to be associated with reproductive and body size traits in cattle. The signal on chromosome 14 replicates the pleiotropic quantitative trait locus encompassing PLAG1 that affects male fertility in cattle and stature in several species. Based on intensive literature mining, SP4, MAGEL2, SH3RF2, PDE5A and SNAI2 are proposed as novel candidate genes for SC, as they affect growth and testicular size in other animal models. These findings contribute to linking reproductive phenotypes to gene functions, and may offer new insights on the molecular biology of male fertility.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Reprodução Animal, Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias, UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Yuri T
authors.initials: YT
authors.lastname: Utsunomiya
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Reprodução Animal, Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias, UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Adriana S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Carmo
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Zootecnia, UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Haroldo H R
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Neves
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Zootecnia, UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil ; GenSys Consultores Associados, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Carvalheiro
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Reprodução Animal, Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias, UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Márcia C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Matos
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Reprodução Animal, Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias, UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Ludmilla B
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Zavarez
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Apoio, Saúde e Produção Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária de Araçatuba, UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista, Araçatuba, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Pier K R K
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.affiliation: Division of Livestock Sciences, Department of Sustainable Agricultural Systems, BOKU - University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Ana M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Pérez O'Brien
authors.affiliation: Division of Livestock Sciences, Department of Sustainable Agricultural Systems, BOKU - University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Johann
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sölkner
authors.affiliation: CSIRO - Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Food Futures Flagship, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
authors.forename: Laercio R
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Porto-Neto
authors.affiliation: Centre for Genetic Improvement of Livestock, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Flávio S
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: Schenkel
authors.affiliation: Centre for Reproduction and Genomics, AgResearch, Invermay, Mosgiel, Otago, New Zealand.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: McEwan
authors.affiliation: Animal Improvement Programs Laboratory, ARS-USDA - Agricultural Research Service - United States Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, Maryland, United States of America.
authors.forename: John B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Cole
authors.affiliation: Bioinformatics and Animal Genomics Laboratory, Embrapa Dairy Cattle, Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
authors.forename: Marcos V G B
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: da Silva
authors.affiliation: Bovine Functional Genomics Laboratory, ARS-USDA - Agricultural Research Service - United States Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, Maryland, United States of America.
authors.forename: Curtis P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Van Tassell
authors.affiliation: Bovine Functional Genomics Laboratory, ARS-USDA - Agricultural Research Service - United States Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, Maryland, United States of America.
authors.forename: Tad S
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Sonstegard
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Reprodução Animal, Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias, UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil ; Departamento de Apoio, Saúde e Produção Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária de Araçatuba, UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista, Araçatuba, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: José Fernando
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Garcia
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle; D002874:Chromosome Mapping / Q000662:veterinary*; D002875:Chromosomes / Q000648:ultrastructure; D005298:Fertility; D016678:Genome; D055106:Genome-Wide Association Study; D005838:Genotype; D008297:Male; D009929:Organ Size; D010641:Phenotype; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D040641:Quantitative Trait Loci; D012611:Scrotum / Q000033:anatomy & histology*