A Review of Markers for Wool and Sheep Carcase Quality Traits

Abstract

The use of DNA and protein markers for selecting wool and carcase traits is reviewed. The molecular technologies are unlikely to completely replace traditional genetic evaluations for these product-quality traits for a number of reasons. For sheep selection, using protein markers detected by the use of two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis technology is probably too expensive. However, discovering which specific proteins are expressed in superior animals enables the use of high-throughput, immunochemistry laboratory or in-field assays to detect those protein markers. Alternatively, the process of gene detection and location of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within the genes that can be used as DNA markers will be greatly assisted by protein expression studies. DNA or protein chip arrays to detect the presence of DNA or proteins markers will make the process less expensive. Relative abundance of structural proteins is probably more important than their presence or absence in determining quality-trait phenotypes.