Abstract：The number of vertebrae is an economically important trait in livestock. Multi-vertebrae means increasing in numbers of animal's thoracicae and lumbales. Animals can improve performance in the size, meat production, gross production, skin area, adaptability and feed utilization with the increase of their vertebral number. Animal breeds with multi-vertebrae can be cultivated by directional selection because of the high heritability of vertebral number trait. Many achievements of studies on vertebral number trait have been made in swine (Sus scrofa), whereas the results were limited in other livestock such as sheep (Ovis aries), and cattle (Bos taurus) and yak (B. grunniens). This paper summarized the advances in gene mapping of vertebral number trait, and briefly described the new opportunities brought by high-throughput sequencing for the study in gene mapping of vertebral number trait in livestock.
