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Research article - Peer-reviewed, 2004

Limited number of patrilines in horse domestication

Lindgren G, Backstrom N, Swinburne J, Hellborg L, Einarsson A, Sandberg K, Cothran G, Vila C, Binns M, Ellegren H

Abstract

Genetic studies using mitochondrial DNA ( mtDNA) have identified extensive matrilinear diversity among domestic horses. Here, we show that this high degree of polymorphism is not matched by a corresponding patrilinear diversity of the male-specific Y chromosome. In fact, a screening for single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 14.3 kb of noncoding Y chromosome sequence among 52 male horses of 15 different breeds did not identify a single segregation site. These observations are consistent with a strong sex-bias in the domestication process, with few stallions contributing genetically to the domestic horse

Published in

Nature Genetics
2004, Volume: 36, number: 4, pages: 335-336
Publisher: NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP