Use of genomic data to determine breed composition of Australian sheep

Abstract

The Australian sheep industry is characterised by the use of many sheep breeds and regular crossing among them. For the purposes of genetic evaluation, sheep are currently assigned breed proportions based on pedigree. SNP genotypes have been used in many applications to reveal population structure including livestock breeds. In this paper, we investigate the use of SNP genotypes to determine breed structure in Australian sheep breeds using the genotype database assembled for genetic evaluation. Algorithms implemented in two software programs, ADMIXTURE and BreedComp were able to identify sheep breeds and genetic groups within the Merino breed. These results can potentially lead to more accurate identification of breed content, and more accurate predictions of breeding value through improved allocation to genetic groups.