238. Phylogenetic analysis and nucleotide diversity of 69 cattle breeds including German Black Pied cattle using WGS

Abstract

Local populations such as the endangered German Black Pied cattle (DSN) are an important genetic resource for the future of livestock breeding. To provide more information on the genome composition of DSN, we performed phylogenetic analysis and calculated genome-wide nucleotide diversity using variants from whole-genome sequencing of 302 DSN, and 1,394 individuals from 68 taurine breeds. Phylogenetic analysis detected four main clusters that could be assigned to their respective geographical origin: Northern Europe, Central Europe, Jersey and Guernsey islands, and an area comprising Eastern Europe, Central Italy, and Asia. DSN showed close relationship to Dutch Friesian Red, Dutch Belted, Holstein, Eastern Flanders White Red, and Kholmogory. Nucleotide diversity was medium in DSN (0.001528) while it was highest in breeds from Asia and Eastern Europe (>0.0017). Nucleotide diversity was particularly high on BTA 23 between 19 and 37 Mb where the bovine major histocompatibility complex and additional immune genes are located.