ARS | Publication request: Evaluation of Two Positional Candidate Genes on BTA14 for Association with Dry Matter Intake in Beef Cattle

Submitted to: Annual International Plant & Animal Genome Conference
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: December 1, 2009
Publication Date: January 1, 2010
Citation: Lindholm-Perry, A.K., Kuehn, L.A., Smith, T.P., Freetly, H.C., Snelling, W.M. 2010. Evaluation of Two Positional Candidate Genes on BTA14 for Association with Dry Matter Intake in Beef Cattle [abstract]. Plant & Animal Genome XVIII Conference. Poster No. P553. p. 216.

Technical Abstract: The ability to genetically select animals that require lower amounts of feed while achieving acceptable levels of production will result in substantial cost savings for cattle producers. The purpose of this study was to identify genes that may be responsible for differences among cattle in dry matter intake (DMI). Steers (n=1195) with DMI values obtained from a high corn diet measured for 140 days were genotyped with the Bovine SNP50 BeadChip. A single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) association was performed using MTDFREML and four SNP on the chip in a 120 Kb region on BTA14 were identified as significant. This region was near the genes for lysophospholipase 1 (LYPLA1) and transmembrane protein 68 (TMEM68. Lysophospholipase 1 was recently shown to inhibit ghrelin in the rat stomach and TMEM68 is expressed in the bovine rumen and abomasum and is involved with metabolic processes. Both of these genes were sequenced and polymorphisms were identified. A total of 44 SNP in the LYPLA1 and TMEM68 genes and in their flanking regions were genotyped. The statistical analysis programs Mendel and MTDFREML were used to test whether SNP in these candidate genes were associated with DMI. After correction for multiple testing, five markers in a region on BTA14 located approximately 69 Kb upstream of TMEM68 were significant for DMI (P-values </= 0.01). Genetic markers predictive for DMI values in this population of cattle may be useful for the identification and selection of animals that consume less feed, although impact of these markers on production traits needs to be assessed.