Haplotype association of ovine leptin gene on breeding value of body measurements in Makooei sheep breed

Abstract

The research was undertaken to find association of genetic variation in the exon 3 of the leptin gene and breeding value of body weight traits in Makooei sheep breed using single strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP). The PCR product was obtained to encompass exon 3 of leptin gene corresponding to ovine leptin gene. The PCR fragments were subjected to electrophoresis to reveal the SSCP patterns. Among the total of 130 sheep, five SSCP patterns (haplotypes) were identified for amplified fragment. The frequencies of SSCP patterns of polymorphic fragment were 0.09, 0.17, 0.37, 0.14 and 0.23.The relation between the different haplotypes and body measurements including body length (BL), heart girth (HG), height at withers (HW), height at back (HB), rump length (RL) and scrotal circumference (SC) were ascertained in all of the analyzed animals. According to our results, there is significant association between the different haplotypes of this fragment with additive estimated breeding value for the HG and RL traits. These results confirmed the potential usefulness of leptin gene in marker-assisted selection programs for sheep breeding in Makooei sheep breed.

Keywords

• Body measurements
• leptin
• polymorphism
• breeding value
• Makooei sheep