Biodiv Sci ›› 2008, Vol. 16 ›› Issue (2): 156-165.  DOI: 10.3724/SP.J.1003.2008.07292

• Original article • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Genetic diversity of five native Chinese yak breeds based on microsatellite DNA markers

Xinjun Liao1,3, Hong Chang3, Guixiang Zhang2,*(), Donglei Wang3, Weitao Song4, Xu Han2, Zifu Zhang5   

  1. 1 College of Life Sciences, Jinggangshan University, Ji’an, Jiangxi 343009
    2 Center of Preservation and Utilization of Genetic Resources of Domestic Animals and Forage, National Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Service, Beijing 100094
    3 College of Animal Science and Technology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009
    4 Institute of Poultry Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Yangzhou 225003
    5 College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100094
  • Received:2007-09-17 Accepted:2007-12-24 Online:2008-03-20 Published:2008-02-20
  • Contact: Guixiang Zhang

Abstract:

Genetic variations within and relationships between five indigenous Chinese yak (Bos grunniens) breeds (Pali, Sibu, Tibetan High Mountainous yak, Maiwa and Jiulong) were investigated using 16 microsatellite markers with the fluorescence-multiplex PCR technique. The gayal (Bos frontalis) was used as outgroup. For the six populations studied, number of effective alleles (Ne) ranged from 2.2043 to 3.2754, mean heterozygosity (H) ranged from 0.4858 to 0.6153, and mean polymorphism information content (PIC) ranged from 0.4230 to 0.5711. The five indigenous Chinese yak breeds had high genetic diversity at the microsatellite DNA level, while the gayal showed less genetic variation. The genetic differentiation among the populations was very low, with a Gst value of 0.0527. In neighbor-joining and fuzzy clustering trees, the five yak breeds grouped into two clades, one comprising Jiulong yaks and the other including Pali, Sibu, Tibetan High Mountainous yak and Maiwa yaks. Our results may provide a scientific basis for future conservation and exploitation of native Chinese yak breeds.

Key words: yak, genetic differentiation, resource conservation, genetic relationship