Abstract
Abstract
Background
Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) are effective for dissecting the genetic basis of complex quantitative traits in livestock. Body conformation and growth traits in Guanling cattle are economically important, but the underlying genetic architecture remains largely unexplored.
Results
In this study, nine body conformation and growth-related traits—including withers height (WH), hip height (HH), body length (BL), chest girth (CG), abdominal girth (AG), cannon bone circumference (CBC), chest width (CW), pin bone width (PBW), and body weight (BW)—were measured in 69 Guanling cattle. Whole-genome resequencing and quality control yielded 16,417,194 high-quality variants for GWAS. Using a mixed linear model accounting for population structure and relatedness, we identified 15 significant single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) annotated to 19 candidate genes. Major association signals were detected for WH, AG, CBC, and PBW. Notably, INSC, ANO3, LPL, ITPR2, PLXNA2, and IPMK were highlighted as biologically meaningful candidates involved in cell polarity, ion transport, lipid metabolism, calcium signaling, and tissue morphogenesis.
Conclusions
These findings indicate that body conformation traits in Guanling cattle are complex quantitative traits influenced by multiple genes and pathways. The identified candidate loci provide a valuable resource for future marker-assisted selection and genetic improvement of this local breed.