Mitochondrial analysis sheds light on the origin of hair sheep

作者：Alvarez I; Capote J; Traore A; Fonseca N; Perez K; Cuervo M; Fernandez I; Goyache F^*

来源：Animal Genetics, 2013, 44(3): 344-347.

DOI：10.1111/j.1365-2052.2012.02398.x

• Canary Islands
• Caribbean sheep
• mitochondrial DNA
• West African sheep

A total of 180 mtDNA sequences from hair Caribbean (93), West African (73) and Canarian-wooled (14) sheep were analysed to shed light on the origin of hair sheep. A comparison of 360 Iberian sheep sequences retrieved from GenBank was performed to assess a possible European origin of the Caribbean hair sheep. These 180 sequences gave 48 different haplotypes (16 in Caribbean sheep). All Caribbean and Canarian-wooled sequences and 91.8% of the West African samples belonged to haplogroup B. The sheep analysed showed wide haplotypic identity. Caribbean sheep shared roughly two-thirds of their samples with Canarian-wooled and West African samples, respectively. Principal component analysis showed that the Caribbean and the Canarian-wooled sheep clustered together. Additional analyses showed that hair and Iberian sheep had wide genetic identity. It was not possible to ascertain a single Canarian, African or European origin of the Caribbean hair sheep using mtDNA markers only. European, African and Caribbean hair sheep maternal genetic backgrounds likely result from related domestication events.

• 出版日期2013-6