Fat Cows - Selection Signatures in Korean Hanwoo and Australian Wagyu cattle

Abstract

Genotypic data of 700k markers for five beef cattle breeds were analyzed in regards to their allele frequencies based on their fixation index (FST). The two breeds of interest were the Korean Hanwoo and the Australian Wagyu which are known to have high intramuscular fat content. FST values were compared to Angus, Holstein, and Chinese Yeonbyun. We found 27 and 24 breed specific genome regions for the Hanwoo and Wagyu, respectively. These regions differed significantly between the five breeds, indicating selection pressure on these regions. We narrowed down 18 and 14 regions that were unique to the Hanwoo and Wagyu, respectively. Of these, six regions in the Hanwoo and three regions in the Wagyu harbor potential candidate genes involved either directly in fat metabolism and synthesis or indirectly in blood vessel development.