scholarly journals Admixture mapping in interspecific Populus hybrids identifies classes of genomic architectures for phytochemical, morphological and growth traits:

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luisa Bresadola ◽  
Celine Caseys ◽  
Stefano Castiglione ◽  
C. Alex Buerkle ◽  
Daniel Wegmann ◽  
...  

The genomic architecture of functionally important traits is key to understanding the maintenance of reproductive barriers and trait differences when divergent populations or species hybridize. We conducted a Genome-Wide Association Study (GWAS) to study trait architecture in natural hybrids of two ecologically divergent Populus species. We genotyped 472 seedlings from a natural hybrid zone of Populus alba and P. tremula for genome-wide markers from reduced representation sequencing, phenotyped the plants in common gardens for 46 phytochemical (phenylpropanoid), morphological, and growth traits, and used a Bayesian polygenic model for mapping. We detected three classes of genomic architectures: (1) traits with finite, detectable associations of genetic loci with phenotypic variation in addition to highly polygenic heritability, (2) traits with indications for polygenic heritability only, (3) traits with no detectable heritability. For class (1), we identified genome regions with plausible candidate genes for phenylpropanoid biosynthesis or its regulation, including MYB transcription factors and glycosyl transferases. GWAS in natural, recombinant hybrids represents a promising step towards resolving the genomic architecture of phenotypic traits in long-lived species. This facilitates the fine-mapping and subsequent functional characterization of genes and networks causing differences in hybrid performance and fitness.

Animals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 493
Author(s):  
Salvatore Mastrangelo ◽  
Filippo Cendron ◽  
Gianluca Sottile ◽  
Giovanni Niero ◽  
Baldassare Portolano ◽  
...  

Through the development of the high-throughput genotyping arrays, molecular markers and genes related to phenotypic traits have been identified in livestock species. In poultry, plumage color is an important qualitative trait that can be used as phenotypic marker for breed identification. In order to assess sources of genetic variation related to the Polverara chicken breed plumage colour (black vs. white), we carried out a genome-wide association study (GWAS) and a genome-wide fixation index (FST) scan to uncover the genomic regions involved. A total of 37 animals (17 white and 20 black) were genotyped with the Affymetrix 600 K Chicken single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) Array. The combination of results from GWAS and FST revealed a total of 40 significant markers distributed on GGA 01, 03, 08, 12 and 21, and located within or near known genes. In addition to the well-known TYR, other candidate genes have been identified in this study, such as GRM5, RAB38 and NOTCH2. All these genes could explain the difference between the two Polverara breeds. Therefore, this study provides the basis for further investigation of the genetic mechanisms involved in plumage color in chicken.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Şakir Burak Bükücü ◽  
Mehmet Sütyemez ◽  
Sina Kefayati ◽  
Aibibula Paizila ◽  
Abdulqader Jighly ◽  
...  

Abstract Breeding studies in walnut (Juglans regia L.) are usually time consuming due to the long juvenile period and therefore, this study aimed to determine markers associated with time of leaf budburst and flowering-related traits by performing a genome-wide association study (GWAS). We investigated genotypic variation and its association with time of leaf budburst and flowering-related traits in 188 walnut accessions. Phenotypic data was obtained from 13 different traits during 3 consecutive years. We used DArT-seq for genotyping with a total of 33,519 (14,761 SNP and 18,758 DArT) markers for genome-wide associations to identify marker underlying these traits. Significant correlations were determined among the 13 different traits. Linkage disequilibrium decayed very quickly in walnut in comparison with other plants. Sixteen quantitative trait loci (QTL) with major effects (R2 between 0.08 and 0.23) were found to be associated with a minimum of two phenotypic traits each. Of these QTL, QTL05 had the maximum number of associated traits (seven). Our study is GWAS for time of leaf budburst and flowering-related traits in Juglans regia L. and has a strong potential to efficiently implement the identified QTL in walnut breeding programs.


Heredity ◽  
2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanhua Zhang ◽  
Yuzhe Wang ◽  
Yiyi Li ◽  
Junfeng Wu ◽  
Xinlei Wang ◽  
...  

Abstract Chicken growth traits are economically important, but the relevant genetic mechanisms have not yet been elucidated. Herein, we performed a genome-wide association study to identify the variants associated with growth traits. In total, 860 chickens from a Gushi-Anka F2 resource population were phenotyped for 68 growth and carcass traits, and 768 samples were genotyped based on the genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS) method. Finally, 734 chickens and 321,314 SNPs remained after quality control and removal of the sex chromosomes, and these data were used to carry out a GWAS analysis. A total of 470 significant single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for 43 of the 68 traits were detected and mapped on chromosomes (Chr) 1–6, -9, -10, -16, -18, -23, and -27. Of these, the significant SNPs in Chr1, -4, and -27 were found to be associated with more than 10 traits. Multiple traits shared significant SNPs, indicating that the same mutation in the region might have a large effect on multiple growth or carcass traits. Haplotype analysis revealed that SNPs within the candidate region of Chr1 presented a mosaic pattern. The significant SNPs and pathway enrichment analysis revealed that the MLNR, MED4, CAB39L, LDB2, and IGF2BP1 genes could be putative candidate genes for growth and carcass traits. The findings of this study improve our understanding of the genetic mechanisms regulating chicken growth and carcass traits and provide a theoretical basis for chicken breeding programs.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. e0246510
Author(s):  
Mathias Ruben Gemmer ◽  
Chris Richter ◽  
Thomas Schmutzer ◽  
Manish L. Raorane ◽  
Björn Junker ◽  
...  

Metabolites play a key role in plants as they are routing plant developmental processes and are involved in biotic and abiotic stress responses. Their analysis can offer important information on the underlying processes. Regarding plant breeding, metabolite concentrations can be used as biomarkers instead of or in addition to genetic markers to predict important phenotypic traits (metabolic prediction). In this study, we applied a genome-wide association study (GWAS) in a wild barley nested association mapping (NAM) population to identify metabolic quantitative trait loci (mQTL). A set of approximately 130 metabolites, measured at early and late sampling dates, was analysed. For four metabolites from the early and six metabolites from the late sampling date significant mQTL (grouped as 19 mQTL for the early and 25 mQTL for the late sampling date) were found. Interestingly, all of those metabolites could be classified as sugars. Sugars are known to be involved in signalling, plant growth and plant development. Sugar-related genes, encoding mainly sugar transporters, have been identified as candidate genes for most of the mQTL. Moreover, several of them co-localized with known flowering time genes like Ppd-H1, HvELF3, Vrn-H1, Vrn-H2 and Vrn-H3, hinting on the known role of sugars in flowering. Furthermore, numerous disease resistance-related genes were detected, pointing to the signalling function of sugars in plant resistance. An mQTL on chromosome 1H in the region of 13 Mbp to 20 Mbp stood out, that alone explained up to 65% of the phenotypic variation of a single metabolite. Analysis of family-specific effects within the diverse NAM population showed the available natural genetic variation regarding sugar metabolites due to different wild alleles. The study represents a step towards a better understanding of the genetic components of metabolite accumulation, especially sugars, thereby linking them to biological functions in barley.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xinghai Zhu ◽  
Junhao Zhang ◽  
Xiujiang Hou ◽  
Pingping Liu ◽  
Jia Lv ◽  
...  

Molluscan shell color has consistently drawn attention for its abundant diversity and commercial use in shellfish breeding projects. Recently, two new strains of bay scallop (Argopecten irradians irradians) with different shell colors as marked phenotypic traits have been artificially bred to improve their economic values; however, the inheritance mechanism of their shell pigmentation is still unclear. In this study, a genome-wide association study (GWAS) was conducted to determine the genetic basis of shell color in bay scallops utilizing 29,036 high-quality single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) derived from 80 purple-red (PP) and 80 black-brown (BP) shell color individuals. The result of the GWAS showed that 469 SNPs (p <1.72E−6) significantly associated with shell color were mainly distributed in chromosome 7. The top three SNPs (i.e., chr7-12764003, chr7-13213864, and chr7-11899306) are located in the genic region of G-protein-coupled receptor-like 101 (GRL101), polyketide synthase 1 (PKS1), and phosphoinositide phospholipase C (PLC1), which have been widely reported to be involved in pigmentation. Successfully, the top three SNPs were verified in another non-breeding bay scallop population. Furthermore, Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analyses obtained 38 GO terms covering 297 genes and aggregating pathways involving 252 annotated genes. Specifically, the expression profiles of the top three identified candidate genes were detected in mantles of PP and BP individuals by real-time quantitative reverse transcription PCR. The significantly higher expression levels of GRL101 (6.43-fold) and PLC1 (6.48-fold) in PP, and PKS1 (12.02-fold) in BP implied that GRL101 and PLC1 potentially functioned in PP shell coloration, and black pigmentation in BP might be principally regulated by PKS1. Our data provide valuable information for deciphering the phenotype differences of shell color in the bay scallop.


Agronomy ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 1602
Author(s):  
Feng Luo ◽  
Zhongyou Pei ◽  
Xiongwei Zhao ◽  
Huifen Liu ◽  
Yiwei Jiang ◽  
...  

Sorghum is an important grain, forage, and bioenergy crop. The objective of this study was to identify genetic signals associated with plant architecture and bioenergy traits in sorghum and sudangrass germplasm through a genome-wide association study (GWAS). Plant height (HT), tiller number (TN), internode number (IN), stem diameter (SD), panicle length (PL), panicle weight (PW), reducing sugar (RS) content, Brix, and protein (PRO) content were assessed in 300 germplasm consisting of grain sorghum, sweet sorghum, sudangrass, sweet sorghum-sweet sorghum recombinant inbred lines (RILs) and sudangrass-sudangrass RILs grown in three different environments over two years. Large variations of phenotypic traits were observed in the population panel. The heritability of traits were all higher than 0.5, ranging from 0.52 (PRO) to 0.92 (HT) with an average of 0.76. The population exhibited three population structures (Q) and minor relative kinship (K), assessed by using 7982 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). After controlling Q and K, GWAS identified 24 SNPs that were significantly associated with traits, including three SNPs with HT, four with TN, four with PL, three with Brix, and ten with RS. Of them, seven SNPs were novel signals that were not identified previously, including one for HT, one for TN, one for Brix, and four for RS. The putative candidate genes involved in brassinosteroid regulatory pathway, auxin biosynthesis, carbohydrate metabolism, and sugar transport were identified underlying the significant SNPs. Identification of SNP signals and related candidate genes would enrich the current genomic resource for further molecular breeding aimed at improvement of food, feed, and biofuel productions of sorghum.


2021 ◽  
Vol 99 (Supplement_3) ◽  
pp. 244-244
Author(s):  
El Hamidi Hay ◽  
Andrew Roberts

Abstract Crossbreeding is widely used in the beef cattle industry to exploit benefits of heterosis. This study evaluated the effects of heterozygosity on growth traits in an Angus x Hereford cross population. Moreover, a genome wide association study was conducted to detect regions in the genome with significant dominance effects on growth traits contributing to heterosis. A total of 1,530 animals, comprised of pure Line 1 Hereford, Angus and Angus x Line 1 Hereford crosses, were evaluated. Phenotypes included birth weight, weaning weight and yearling weight. All animals were genotyped with GeneSeek GGP LD 50k. Effects of genomic heterozygosity on growth traits were estimated. These effects were -0.76 kg (P < 0.001), 4.67 kg (P < 0.0001), 42.39 kg (P < 0.02) on birth weight, weaning weight and yearling weight respectively. A genome wide association study revealed several SNP markers with significant heterotic effects associated with birth weight, weaning weight and yearling weight. These SNP markers were located on chromosomes 1, 2, 14, 19, 13 and 12. Genes in these regions were reported to be involved in growth and other important physiological mechanisms. Our study revealed several regions associated with dominance effects and contributing to heterosis. These results could be beneficial in optimizing crossbreeding.


Genes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 1693
Author(s):  
Diego Peres Alonso ◽  
Marcus Vinicius Niz Alvarez ◽  
Paulo Eduardo Martins Ribolla ◽  
Jan E. Conn ◽  
Tatiane Marques Porangaba de Oliveira ◽  
...  

Mosquito susceptibility to Plasmodium spp. infection is of paramount importance for malaria occurrence and sustainable transmission. Therefore, understanding the genetic features underlying the mechanisms of susceptibility traits is pivotal to assessing malaria transmission dynamics in endemic areas. The aim of this study was to investigate the susceptibility of Nyssorhynchus darlingi—the dominant malaria vector in Brazil—to Plasmodium spp. using a reduced representation genome-sequencing protocol. The investigation was performed using a genome-wide association study (GWAS) to identify mosquito genes that are predicted to modulate the susceptibility of natural populations of the mosquito to Plasmodium infection. After applying the sequence alignment protocol, we generated the variant panel and filtered variants; leading to the detection of 202,837 SNPs in all specimens analyzed. The resulting panel was used to perform GWAS by comparing the pool of SNP variants present in Ny. darlingi infected with Plasmodium spp. with the pool obtained in field-collected mosquitoes with no evidence of infection by the parasite (all mosquitoes were tested separately using RT-PCR). The GWAS results for infection status showed two statistically significant variants adjacent to important genes that can be associated with susceptibility to Plasmodium infection: Cytochrome P450 (cyp450) and chitinase. This study provides relevant knowledge on malaria transmission dynamics by using a genomic approach to identify mosquito genes associated with susceptibility to Plasmodium infection in Ny. darlingi in western Amazonian Brazil.


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