POLYMORPHISM OF THE KAP 1.3 GENE IN SHEEP OF DIFFERENT BREEDS

Abstract

Nowadays, it is relevant to use molecular genetic methods for the selection
of animals with high-quality productivity characteristics, including wool. According to the
results of many studies, the KAP 1.3 gene is associated with fineness, shearing, length and
strength of fibers. Therefore, the identification of genotype distributions of this gene in sheep
of different breeds gives the possibility of studying the presence of associations between wool
productivity parameters and gene polymorphism. In connection with the above, the purpose of
the research was to study and analyze the polymorphism of the KAP 1.3 in sheep of various
breeds, which were bred in different regions of Russia. The study was conducted to identify
genetic variations of the KAP 1.3 gene in four sheep breeds using the PCR-RFLP method.
Animal DNA, which was isolated from the whole blood, was used as a biomaterial. The object of the study was sheep of Dagestan Mountain (n = 36) and Andian (n = 10) breeds, which
were bred at the peasant farm enterprise “Salam-A” in Gunibsky District of the Republic of
Dagestan; crossbreeds of sheep with a pedigree of ½ Kalmyk fat-tailed + ½ Charollais (n =
34), from the peasant farm enterprise “Arl” of the Yashkulsky District and Chernozemelsky
Merino (n = 18) of OAO (OJSC) breeding farm “Chernozemelsky” of the Chernozemelsky
District of the Republic of Kalmykia. The analysis of the polymorphism of the KAP1.3 gene
revealed the presence of two alleles KAP 1.3X, KAP 1.3 Y and three genotypes: homozygous
variants – KAP 1.3 XХ, KAP 1.3 YY and heterozygous – KAP 1.3 XY. The obtained results
showed such a tendency that in all the studied breeds, the distribution of genotypes was characterized by a high frequency of occurrence from 50,0 to 66,4% of homozygous animals with
the genotype KAP 1.3XХ, since the allele KAP 1.3X was the most frequently encountered. The
genetic structure of sheep of different breeds was evaluated by methods of genetic and statistical analysis. The heterozygosity test turned out to be negative in all the studied samples with
a variability from minus 0,10 to minus 0,87, which indicated a lack of heterozygotes in the
studied samples. The revealed polymorphism of the studied DNA marker presents an opportunity for further research in the wool production, which allows for more careful selection and
breeding of sheep of the studied breeds.