Geographic and breed distribution of an Msp I PCR-RFLP in the bovine growth hormone (bGH) gene

Information is presented on the frequency of the Msp I (-) allele in the third intron of the bovine growth hormone gene in a large number of cattle breeds. Consideration of the breed frequencies in relation to their geographic origin shows a low frequency for breeds originating in Northern Europe, moderate frequencies for breeds originating in Eastern Europe or the countries surrounding the Mediterranean basin, and very high frequencies for breeds originating in the Indian subcontinent. Consideration of breed frequencies in relation to breed type, shows low to moderate frequencies for the humpless breeds, high frequencies for the humped breeds. Various explanations for this distribution are discussed, among them the possibility that the Msp I (-) allele originated in the Bos indicus breeds of the Indian subcontinent, from which it diffused through the humpless Bos taurus breeds of Eastern Europe, the Mediterranean basin, eventually reaching Western, Northern Europe, Western Africa in low frequencies.     

The Origins of Domesticated Cattle

The origin of domestic cattle has perplexed archaeologists for more than a century. Researchers have proposed various theories, which offer alternative spatial and chronological models for the origin and spread of domesticated cattle. One point of discussion is whether domestic cattle had a single or multiple origins; however, most authorities considered that the first steps towards cattle domestication were taken in southwest Asia and that domesticated cattle entered Europe with pastoralists migrating from this region. Domesticated taurine cattle were thought to have entered Africa in successive waves from southwest Asia, while zebu cattle migrated into Africa at a later date from Arabia and the Indian subcontinent. Analysis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) shows that taurine and zebu cattle divergence before the Holocene and were probably domesticated independently. Recent mtDNA sequence data shows that African and European taurine cattle were probably domesticated independently, but that there was a process of genetic introgression between taurine and zebu cattle in Africa. Ancient DNA studies over the last 10 years suggest that Northern European aurochsens apparently contributed little or nothing to domestic cattle while Southern European aurochsens apparently made a significant input. However, Middle Eastern aurochsen, unfortunately not typed yet, are expected to be to be very similar to European breeds as well, both because archeological data suggest that the major center of domestication for European Bos taurus breeds was the Fertile Crescent (9), and also because a mtDNA sequence from a Syrian specimen dated at 8,000–9,000 years ago shows a typical European haplotype found both in modern breeds and the Italian aurochsen. Evidence seems to suggest that small to moderate levels of local gene flow from wild Bos primigenius females in selected breeds were either accepted or may be reinforced by Neolithic breeders.     

Phylogenetic relationships of Northeast Asian cattle to other cattle populations determined using mitochondrial DNA D-loop sequence polymorphism

Phylogenetic relationships of Northeast Asian cattle to various other cattle breeds including Bos taurus, Bos indicus, and Bison bison were assessed using mtDNA D-loop sequences. A neighbor-joining tree was constructed using sequences determined for 4 Cheju Black, 4 Cheju Yellow, 4 Korean Yellow cattle (Bos taurus), and 2 American Brahman cattle (Bos indicus), and also published sequences for 31 Japanese Black cattle, 45 European breed cattle, 6 African zebus, 2 African taurines, and 6 Indian zebus. Five American bisons (Bison bison) were used as an outgroup. The neighbor-joining tree showed that American bisons and Indian zebus are clearly separate from other cattle breeds, respectively, and African cattle clustered together, although with a low bootstrap probability (<50%). Results indicate that cattle in Northeast Asia, Europe, and Africa are closely related to each other–suggesting their recent divergence, but are separate from Indian zebus.     

Biochemical polymorphism in Egyptian Baladi cattle and their relationship with other breeds

Gene frequencies were estimated in a sample of Baladi cattle for milk proteins, blood proteins and blood groups. Gene frequency estimates of Bos taurus, Bos indicus and Sanga breeds were assembled from the literature. The gene frequencies were utilized for estimating the genetic distance between the breeds and breed groups. The Egyptian Baladi cattle appeared to be closer to Bos taurus breeds than to the Sanga. They are far removed from Zebus.     

Nucleotide Sequence and Variation of IGF2 Gene Exon 6 in Bos Taurus and Bos Indicus Cattle

The major assumption of this study is that polymorphism of a gene could be used to investigate its allele-specific expression as well as its methylation and imprinting status. Therefore, the aim of this study was to analyze the polymorphism of the coding region of the bovine IGF2 gene and to determine the sequence of its gene exon 6 in Bos taurus and Bos indicus cattle. A single nucleotide “C” deletion/insertion polymorphism was found in both cattle subspecies and a G/T transversion (RFLP-MboII) in the Bos indicus IGF2 gene. A 407-bp fragment of bovine IGF2 exon 6 was sequenced and the sequences (including variable nucleotides) were deposited in the GenBank database. A comparative analysis was performed for this fragment from different species; 99.5% identity was found between Bos taurus and Bos indicus cattle.     

On the origin of cattle: How aurochs became cattle and colonized the world

Since their domestication in the Neolithic, cattle have belonged to our cultural heritage. The reconstruction of their history is an active field of research 1 that contributes to our understanding of human history. Archeological data are now supplemented by analyses of modern and ancient samples of cattle with DNA markers of maternal, paternal, or autosomal inheritance. The most recent genetic data suggest that maternal lineages of taurine cattle originated in the Fertile Crescent with a possible contribution of South‐European wild cattle populations, while zebu cattle originate from the Indus Valley. Subsequently, cattle accompanied human migrations, which led to the dispersal of domestic cattle of taurine, indicine, or mixed origin over Asia, Africa, Europe, and the New World. This has resulted in their adaptation to different environments and considerable variation in appearance and performance. More recently, rational management of breeding led to international movements of sires, which again changed the global patterns of genetic diversity.     

Complete mitogenome reveals genetic divergence and phylogenetic relationships among Indian cattle (Bos indicus) breeds

Indigenous cattle of India belong to the species, Bos indicus and they possess various adaptability and production traits. However, little is known about the genetic diversity and origin of these breeds. To investigate the status, we sequenced and analyzed the whole mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of seven Indian cattle breeds. In total, 49 single-nucleotide variants (SNVs) were identified among the seven breeds analyzed. We observed a common synonymous SNV in the COII gene (m.7583G?>?A) of all the breeds studied. The phylogenetic analysis and genetic distance estimation showed the close genetic relationship among the Indian cattle breeds, whereas distinct genetic differences were observed between Bos indicus and Bos taurus cattle. Our results indicate a common ancestor for European Zwergzebu breed and South Indian cattle. The estimated divergence time demonstrated that the Bos indicus and Bos taurus cattle lineages diverged 0.92 million years ago. Our study also demonstrates that ancestors of present zebu breeds originated in South and North India separately ～30,000 to 20,000 years ago. In conclusion, the identified genetic variants and results of the phylogenetic analysis may provide baseline information to develop appropriate strategies for management and conservation of Indian cattle breeds.     

Characterization of the 3' untranslated region of bovine parathyroid hormone gene in N'Dama and Boran cattle

We describe a polymorphism in the bovine gene PTHG which can be readily typed by PCR assay. The polymorphism is codominantly inherited and the allele frequencies appear characteristic of Bos indicus and B. taurus cattle.     

Geographic distribution of haplotype diversity at the bovine casein locus

The genetic diversity of the casein locus in cattle was studied on the basis of haplotype analysis. Consideration of recently described genetic variants of the casein genes which to date have not been the subject of diversity studies, allowed the identification of new haplotypes. Genotyping of 30 cattle breeds from four continents revealed a geographically associated distribution of haplotypes, mainly defined by frequencies of alleles at CSN1S1 and CSN3. The genetic diversity within taurine breeds in Europe was found to decrease significantly from the south to the north and from the east to the west. Such geographic patterns of cattle genetic variation at the casein locus may be a result of the domestication process of modern cattle as well as geographically differentiated natural or artificial selection. The comparison of African Bos taurus and Bos indicus breeds allowed the identification of several Bos indicus specific haplotypes (CSN1S1*C-CSN2*A²-CSN3*A_I/CSN3*H) that are not found in pure taurine breeds. The occurrence of such haplotypes in southern European breeds also suggests that an introgression of indicine genes into taurine breeds could have contributed to the distribution of the genetic variation observed.     

Cattle breed-variation in infestation by the horn fly Haematobia irritans

A study was carried out to assess the resistance of pure and cross-bred groups of cattle to the horn fly Haematobia irritans (Linnaeus) (Diptera: Muscidae) in northern Argentina. Pure-bred cattle were Criolla, Iberian Bos taurus Linnaeus (Artiodactyla: Bovidae) and Nellore, Bos indicus Linnaeus (Artiodactyla: Bovidae). Cross-bred cattle were Hereford, British B. taurus (34%) X Nellore (66%) and Hereford (66%) X Nellore (34%). All were heifers and animals were maintained in two groups, each containing a mixture of pure and cross-breeds. The lowest fly numbers were found on Criolla heifers and the highest on Hereford X Nellore cross-breeds. However, it could not be determined from this study whether this was a consequence of breed and/or size, as Criolla heifers were lighter than the corresponding Hereford X Nellore heifers. Fly numbers on the heifers followed an approximately negative binomial distribution. However, the ranking of individual animals in their level of infestation within subgroups was not consistent. Hence, culling the most infested heifers on any given date would at best give only a small improvement in H. irritans control.     

Characterization and genetic analysis of bovine αs1-casein I variant

The aim of this study was to identify the molecular genetic origin underlying the I variant of α_s1-casein and to develop a DNA-based test for this polymorphism as a tool for genetic analyses independent of milk sample testing. All coding exons and flanking regions of the α _{s 1} -casein gene were sequenced in DNA samples from cattle of known α _{s 1} -casein genotypes ( BI , CI , II , CC ), determined by isoelectric focusing of milk samples. A nucleotide substitution (A>T) in exon 11 (g.19836A>T) leads to the exchange of Glu with Asp at amino acid position 84 of the mature protein (p.Glu84Asp) and perfectly co-segregated with the presence of the α_s1-casein I variant in the milk of the analysed animals. Genotyping of a total of 680 DNA samples from 31 Bos taurus and Bos indicus cattle breeds and from Bos grunniens , Bison bison and Bison bonasus by restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis revealed the occurrence of Asp at position 84 at low frequencies in Bos taurus and Bos indicus breeds and established its origin from the α _s1-casein C variant (p.Glu192Gly). Ten different intragenic haplotypes in the gene region from intron 8 to intron 12 were observed by sequencing, of which two occurred in Bison bison and one in Bison bonasus only. Using available casein gene complex information, an association of Asp at position 84 to β-casein A ² and κ-casein B was shown in the Bos indicus breed Banyo Gudali . Taken together, we can postulate that the α _s1-casein variant I is caused by a non-synonymous nucleotide substitution in exon 11 of the gene and that it originated within Bos indicus and spread to Bos taurus subsequently.     

Polymorphism of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in cattle and buffaloes

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from two breeds of cattle, viz., [Hariana (Bos indicus), Holstein (Bos taurus)] and Indian water buffalo (Bubalis bubalus), was analyzed using 13 restriction endonucleases which recognized an average of about 40 six-base sites. Polymorphism among cattle was detected with six of these enzymes. The two Holstein differed at six sites, whereas the Hariana breed (Bos indicus) did not show any site polymorphism. Surprisingly, the Hariana type differed by only one site from one of the Holstein types. The total size of buffalo mtDNA was estimated to be 16.4 kb. Polymorphism within the Murrah buffalo breed was observed with respect to aBglI site. Scarcely any of the restriction fragments of buffalo mtDNA matched those of cattle mtDNA.     

Chemical classification of cattle. 1. Breed groups

From approximately 1000 papers with data on protein polymorphism in some 216 breeds of cattle, 10 polymorphic proteins were compared in means and variances of gene frequencies (arcsin p 1/2) for ten well-recognized breed groups for 196 of the breeds. The polymorphic proteins were alpha-lactalbumin, beta-lactoglobulin, caseins (alpha s1, beta and chi), serum albumin, transferrin, haemoglobin, amylase I and carbonic anhydrase II. The breed groups were North European, Pied Lowland, European Red brachyceros, Channel Island brachyceros, Upland brachyceros, primigenius-brachyceros mixed, primigenius, Indian Zebu, African Humped (with Zebu admixture), and African Humped (Sanga). The coherence within groups and the differences between groups are often impressive. Only carbonic anhydrase II fails to differentiate at least some of the major breed groups. In some cases paradoxical distributions of rare genetic variants can be explained by a more detailed inspection of breed history. The chemical data support the morphological and geographical divisions of cattle into major breed groups. There are three distinct but related brachyceros groups; for some polymorphisms the two Channel Island breeds, the Jersey and the Guernsey, are quite divergent. Although some authorities have considered the Pied Lowland as primigenius, it is a very distinct breed group.     

Chemical classification of cattle. 1. Breed groups

From approximately 1000 papers with data on protein polymorphism in some 216 breeds of cattle, 10 polymorphic proteins were compared in means and variances of gene frequencies (arcsin p½) for ten well-recognized breed groups for 196 of the breeds. The polymorphic proteins were α-lactalbumin, β-lactoglobulin, caseins (α_sl, β and x), serum albumin, transferrin, haemoglobin, amylase I and carbonic anhydrase II. The breed groups were North European, Pied Lowland, European Red brachyceros, Channel Island brachyceros, Upland brachyceros, primigenius-brachyceros mixed, primigenius, Indian Zebu, African Humped (with Zebu admixture), and African Humped (Sanga).
The coherence within groups and the differences between groups are often impressive. Only carbonic anhydrase II fails to differentiate at least some of the major breed groups.
In some cases paradoxical distributions of rare genetic variants can be explained by a more detailed inspection of breed history.
The chemical data support the morphological and geographical divisions of cattle into major breed groups. There are three distinct but related brachyceros groups; for some polymorphisms the two Channel Island breeds, the Jersey and the Guernsey, are quite divergent. Although some authorities have considered the Pied Lowland as primigenius, it is a very distinct breed group.     

Blood groups of Nigerian cattle. Comparative aspects

Cattle, red cell antigens as determined by a selected battery of 37 reagents characterizing genes at 10 major loci in 101 Zebu, 63 Ndama and 78 Muturu from Nigeria, have been compared with corresponding red cell antigens of a total of 257 Bos taurus cattle in Norway, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Hungary and USA. The Zebu cattle, represented by the three subtypes Gudali, Red Bororo and Shuwa Arab, showed the highest number of red cell factors. Ndama and Muturu cattle had a significantly lower number of blood factors than the Zebu cattle. The lowest number of blood factors were found in European Bos taurus breeds.     

Mitochondrial DNA variation in cattle of South China: origin and introgression

Ten restriction endonucleases were used to investigate the mitochondrial DNA restriction fragment length polymorphism (mtDNA RFLP) of 11 native cattle breeds and one cultivated cattle breed in South China. Twenty-three restriction morphs were detected, which can be sorted into five haplotypes. A phylogenetic tree of the haplotypes was constructed by using the 'upgMa' method. Our study showed that haplotype I and II are identical to the zebu (Bos indicus) and taurine (Bos taurus) haplotypes, respectively. Zebu and taurine were the two major origins of cattle populations in South China, and the zebu probably had more influence on the native cattle population than taurine did. Haplotype III is identical to haplotype I of yak (Bos grunniens), which was only detected in the Diqing cattle breed. Haplotype IV was detected for the first time. This haplotype, found only in Dehong cattle, might be from an independent domestication event, probably from another Bos indicus population. Divergence of haplotypes I and IV occurred about 268,000-535,000 years ago, much earlier than the 10,000-year history of cattle husbandry. Our results also suggest a secondary introgession of mtDNA from yak to Diqing cattle.     

Cattle demographic history modelled from autosomal sequence variation

The phylogeography of cattle genetic variants has been extensively described and has informed the history of domestication. However, there remains a dearth of demographic models inferred from such data. Here, we describe sequence diversity at 37 000 bp sampled from 17 genes in cattle from Africa, Europe and India. Clearly distinct population histories are suggested between Bos indicus and Bos taurus, with the former displaying higher diversity statistics. We compare the unfolded site frequency spectra in each to those simulated using a diffusion approximation method and build a best-fitting model of past demography. This implies an earlier, possibly glaciation-induced population bottleneck in B. taurus ancestry with a later, possibly domestication-associated demographic constriction in B. indicus. Strikingly, the modelled indicine history also requires a majority secondary admixture from the South Asian aurochs, indicating a complex, more diffuse domestication process. This perhaps involved multiple domestications and/or introgression from wild oxen to domestic herds; the latter is plausible from archaeological evidence of contemporaneous wild and domestic remains across different regions of South Asia.     

Admixture and diversity in West African cattle populations

We present a population genetic analysis of microsatellite variation in 16 West African cattle populations. West Africa represents a unique juxtaposition of different climatic and ecological zones in a relatively small geographical area. While more humid coastal regions are inhabited by the tsetse fly, a vector which spreads trypanosomiasis among cattle, the disease is not transmitted in the drier areas outside this zone. This is the most thorough study of genetic diversity in cattle within this area, which contains genetically important trypanotolerant Bos taurus breeds. Genetic relationships among the many breeds are examined and levels of diversity are assessed. Admixture levels were determined using a variety of methods. Ancestry informative or population-associated alleles (PAAs) were selected using populations from India, the Near East and Europe. Multivariate analysis, the admix program and model-based Bayesian admixture analysis approaches were also employed. These analyses reveal the direct impact of ecological factors and the profound effect of admixture on the cattle of this region. They also highlight the importance of efforts to prevent further dilution of African taurine breeds by B. indicus cattle.     

Dual origins of dairy cattle farming--evidence from a comprehensive survey of European Y-chromosomal variation

Background

Diversity patterns of livestock species are informative to the history of agriculture and indicate uniqueness of breeds as relevant for conservation. So far, most studies on cattle have focused on mitochondrial and autosomal DNA variation. Previous studies of Y-chromosomal variation, with limited breed panels, identified two Bos taurus (taurine) haplogroups (Y1 and Y2; both composed of several haplotypes) and one Bos indicus (indicine/zebu) haplogroup (Y3), as well as a strong phylogeographic structuring of paternal lineages.

Methodology and Principal Findings

Haplogroup data were collected for 2087 animals from 138 breeds. For 111 breeds, these were resolved further by genotyping microsatellites INRA189 (10 alleles) and BM861 (2 alleles). European cattle carry exclusively taurine haplotypes, with the zebu Y-chromosomes having appreciable frequencies in Southwest Asian populations. Y1 is predominant in northern and north-western Europe, but is also observed in several Iberian breeds, as well as in Southwest Asia. A single Y1 haplotype is predominant in north-central Europe and a single Y2 haplotype in central Europe. In contrast, we found both Y1 and Y2 haplotypes in Britain, the Nordic region and Russia, with the highest Y-chromosomal diversity seen in the Iberian Peninsula.

Conclusions

We propose that the homogeneous Y1 and Y2 regions reflect founder effects associated with the development and expansion of two groups of dairy cattle, the pied or red breeds from the North Sea and Baltic coasts and the spotted, yellow or brown breeds from Switzerland, respectively. The present Y1-Y2 contrast in central Europe coincides with historic, linguistic, religious and cultural boundaries.     

The molecular phylogenetic signature of Bali cattle revealed by maternal and paternal markers

Bali cattle is a domestic cattle breed that can be found in Malaysia. It is a domestic cattle that was purely derived from a domestication event in Banteng (Bos javanicus) around 3,500 BC in Indonesia. This research was conducted to portray the phylogenetic relationships of the Bali cattle with other cattle species in Malaysia based on maternal and paternal lineage. We analyzed the cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) mitochondrial gene and SRY of Y chromosome obtained from five species of the Bos genus (B. javanicus, Bos gaurus, Bos indicus, Bos taurus, and Bos grunniens). The water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) was used as an outgroup. The phylogenetic relationships were observed by employing several algorithms: Neighbor-Joining (PAUP version 4.0), Maximum parsimony (PAUP version 4.0) and Bayesian inference (MrBayes 3.1). Results from the maternal data showed that the Bali cattle formed a monophyletic clade, and together with the B. gaurus clade formed a wild cattle clade. Results were supported by high bootstrap and posterior probability values together with genetic distance data. For the paternal lineage, the sequence variation is low (with parsimony informative characters: 2/660) resulting an unresolved Neighbor-Joining tree. However, Bali cattle and other domestic cattle appear in two monophyletic clades distinct from yak, gaur and selembu. This study expresses the potential of the COI gene in portraying the phylogenetic relationships between several Bos species which is important for conservation efforts especially in decision making since cattle is highly bred and hybrid breeds are often formed. Genetic conservation for this high quality beef cattle breed is important by maintaining its genetic characters to prevent extinction or even decreased the genetic quality.