Association Analysis Between Exon 2 SNPs of IGF1R Gene and Growth Traits in Qinghai Plateau Yaks (Bos grunniens)
ZHAO Qing-Ye1,2, SUN Yong-Gang1,2,*, HAN Yin-Cang1,2, GOU Fa-Jie1,2, CHEN Jian-Yu1,2, JIANG Wei-Qiang1,2, LIU Xin-Yue1,2
1 Academy of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, Qinghai University, Xining 810016, China; 2 Key Laboratory of Plateau Livestock Genetic Resources Conservation and Innovative Utilization, Qinghai Province, Xining 810016, China
Abstract：Insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF1R) belongs to the insulin receptor family and plays a vital role in multiple biological processes. To investigate the impact of polymorphisms in exon 2 of the IGF1R gene on growth traits in yaks (Bos grunniens) on the Qinghai Plateau, this study examined 400 yaks as research subjects. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) detection and genetic analysis of this region were performed using DNA sequencing and haplotype typing techniques. The results identified 4 SNPs within exon 2 (g.7167773C>T, g.7167851C>T, g.7167890C>T, and g.7167938G>A), among which g.7167938G>A conformed to Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, while the other loci exhibited disequilibrium. Polymorphism information content (PIC) analysis revealed that g.7167773C>T and g.7167938G>A were moderately polymorphic, indicating good genetic potential. Association analysis demonstrated that these loci were significantly correlated with yak growth traits (P<0.05). Specifically, individuals with the TT genotype at the g.7167773C>T locus exhibited extremely significantly superior performance across all growth metrics compared with other genotypes (P<0.01). At the g.7167938G>A locus, individuals with GA and AA genotypes had an extremely significantly higher body weight than those with GG genotype (P<0.01). Meanwhile, the slant body length of individuals with GA genotype was also extremely significantly greater than that of GG genotype individuals (P<0.01). Further analysis revealed that the 4 loci formed 7 haplotypes (Hap1~Hap7), with Hap2 being the dominant haplotype (frequency: 0.420). Based on this, diplotype analysis identified 9 combinations. Association analysis indicated that individuals with the diplotype combination H6H7 had extremely significantly higher body weight, withers height, body length, chest girth, and cannon bone circumference than other combinations (P<0.01), suggesting that H6H7 might represent the optimal diplotype combination influencing yak growth traits, and could serve as potential molecular markers for the selection of growth traits in yaks. This study provides a theoretical basis for genetic improvement and molecular breeding of plateau yaks.
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