title: Genome-wide association study for wool production traits in a Chinese Merino sheep population.
abstract: Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) provide a powerful approach for identifying quantitative trait loci without prior knowledge of location or function. To identify loci associated with wool production traits, we performed a genome-wide association study on a total of 765 Chinese Merino sheep (JunKen type) genotyped with 50 K single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). In the present study, five wool production traits were examined: fiber diameter, fiber diameter coefficient of variation, fineness dispersion, staple length and crimp. We detected 28 genome-wide significant SNPs for fiber diameter, fiber diameter coefficient of variation, fineness dispersion, and crimp trait in the Chinese Merino sheep. About 43% of the significant SNP markers were located within known or predicted genes, including YWHAZ, KRTCAP3, TSPEAR, PIK3R4, KIF16B, PTPN3, GPRC5A, DDX47, TCF9, TPTE2, EPHA5 and NBEA genes. Our results not only confirm the results of previous reports, but also provide a suite of novel SNP markers and candidate genes associated with wool traits. Our findings will be useful for exploring the genetic control of wool traits in sheep.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Education Department of Heilongjiang province, Harbin, P. R. China; College of Animal Science and Technology, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Zhipeng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Education Department of Heilongjiang province, Harbin, P. R. China; College of Animal Science and Technology, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary, Xinjiang Academy of Agricultural and Reclamation Science, Shihezi, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Hua
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Education Department of Heilongjiang province, Harbin, P. R. China; College of Animal Science and Technology, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Shouzhi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Education Department of Heilongjiang province, Harbin, P. R. China; College of Animal Science and Technology, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Enguang
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rong
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Education Department of Heilongjiang province, Harbin, P. R. China; College of Animal Science and Technology, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Wenyu
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Pei
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Education Department of Heilongjiang province, Harbin, P. R. China; College of Animal Science and Technology, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Education Department of Heilongjiang province, Harbin, P. R. China; College of Animal Science and Technology, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Ning
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D055106:Genome-Wide Association Study; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D034561:Sheep, Domestic / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development; D014935:Wool / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000254:growth & development*