A Sequence Polymorphism in MSTN Predicts Sprinting Ability and Racing Stamina in Thoroughbred Horses |
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| Authors: | Emmeline W. Hill Jingjing Gu Suzanne S. Eivers Rita G. Fonseca Beatrice A. McGivney Preethi Govindarajan Nick Orr Lisa M. Katz David MacHugh |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Animal Genomics Laboratory, School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.; 2. Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.;University of Utah, United States of America |
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| Abstract: | Variants of the MSTN gene encoding myostatin are associated with muscle hypertrophy phenotypes in a range of mammalian species, most notably cattle, dogs, mice, and humans. Using a sample of registered Thoroughbred horses (n = 148), we have identified a novel MSTN sequence polymorphism that is strongly associated (g.66493737C>T, P = 4.85×10−8) with best race distance among elite racehorses (n = 79). This observation was independently validated (P = 1.91×10−6) in a resampled group of Thoroughbreds (n = 62) and in a cohort of Thoroughbreds (n = 37, P = 0.0047) produced by the same trainer. We observed that C/C horses are suited to fast, short-distance races; C/T horses compete favorably in middle-distance races; and T/T horses have greater stamina. Evaluation of retrospective racecourse performance (n = 142) and stallion progeny performance predict that C/C and C/T horses are more likely to be successful two-year-old racehorses than T/T animals. Here we describe for the first time the identification of a gene variant in Thoroughbred racehorses that is predictive of genetic potential for an athletic phenotype. |
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