article · Frontiers in Genetics
An analysis of genome-wide profiles across eleven Ethiopian indigenous sheep populations reveals distinct genetic backgrounds and candidate genes linked to physical traits. Using the Illumina Ovine 50K SNP BeadChip assay alongside comparisons with sheep populations across Africa, the Middle East, Europe, China, and the Caribbean, the investigation demonstrates that Ethiopian fat-tailed sheep form a separate gene pool from North African and Middle Eastern counterparts. This confirms two distinct evolutionary lineages for African fat-tailed sheep. Within Ethiopia, populations show four distinct genetic backgrounds across fat-rump and long fat-tailed groups, with fat-rump sheep sharing ancestry with Sudanese thin-tail breeds. Selection analysis identified eight genomic regions linked to critical adaptive traits, including body temperature regulation, musculoskeletal development, growth, fat deposition, and fatty acid metabolism. These sheep serve as a unique genetic resource for studying fat metabolism and environmental adaptation.
Body fat distribution and thermoregulation are essential adaptations that enable livestock to survive in challenging environments with fluctuating feed supplies. By identifying the specific genes that govern fat storage and heat regulation in Ethiopian indigenous sheep, this research improves our understanding of mammalian metabolism. It also provides baseline genetic information that can inform conservation strategies for valuable indigenous livestock resources facing environmental pressures.
This work represents early-stage basic genetic research that does not offer an immediate product. However, the identified genetic markers and candidate genes linked to fat metabolism, growth, and heat tolerance could eventually assist livestock breeders and agricultural biotechnology programmes developing targeted marker-assisted selection tools. Real-world application depends on further functional validation of the specific candidate genes in practical breeding environments.
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Variations in body weight and body fat distribution are associated with feed quality and quantity, thermoregulation and energy reserve. Ethiopia is characterised by distinct agro-ecologies and human ethnic farmer’s diversity of ancient origin which have impacted on the variation of its livestock species. Here, we investigate the autosomal genome-wide profiles of 11 Ethiopian indigenous sheep populations using the Illumina Ovine 50K SNP BeadChip assay. Populations from The Caribbean, Europe, Middle East, China and western, northern and southern Africa were included addressing globally, the genetic variation and history of Ethiopian sheep populations. Population structure, PCA and phylogenetic analysis separate the Ethiopian indigenous fat-tail sheep from the North African and Middle Eastern fat-tailed sheep. It indicates two main genetic backgrounds and supports two distinct genetic history for the African fat-tailed sheep. Within Ethiopia, our results indicate that the short fat -tailed do not represent a monophyletic group. Four genetic backgrounds are present within Ethiopian sheep but at different proportions among fat-rump sheep, long fat-tailed sheep from western Ethiopia and long fat-tailed sheep from southern Ethiopia. Ethiopian fat-rump sheep were also found to share a common genetic background with Sudanese thin-tail sheep. Selection signature analysis identified eight candidate genomic regions that spanned genes influencing growth traits and fat deposition (NPR2, HINT2, SPAG8), embryonic development of tendons, bones and cartilage (EYA2, SULF2), regulation of body temperature (DIS3L2, LIN28B) and the control of lipogenesis and intracellular transport of long-chain fatty acids (SREBF1 and FABP3). Our findings indicate that Ethiopian indigenous fat-tail sheep represent a distinct genepool and an important resource for understanding the genetic control of fat metabolism and associated physiological processes.
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DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2018.00699
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