Evolutionary Genomics and Conservation of the Endangered Przewalski’s Horse.
Abstract: Przewalski's horses (PHs, Equus ferus ssp. przewalskii) were discovered in the Asian steppes in the 1870s and represent the last remaining true wild horses. PHs became extinct in the wild in the 1960s but survived in captivity, thanks to major conservation efforts. The current population is still endangered, with just 2,109 individuals, one-quarter of which are in Chinese and Mongolian reintroduction reserves [1]. These horses descend from a founding population of 12 wild-caught PHs and possibly up to four domesticated individuals [2-4]. With a stocky build, an erect mane, and stripped and short legs, they are phenotypically and behaviorally distinct from domesticated horses (DHs, Equus caballus). Here, we sequenced the complete genomes of 11 PHs, representing all founding lineages, and five historical specimens dated to 1878-1929 CE, including the Holotype. These were compared to the hitherto-most-extensive genome dataset characterized for horses, comprising 21 new genomes. We found that loci showing the most genetic differentiation with DHs were enriched in genes involved in metabolism, cardiac disorders, muscle contraction, reproduction, behavior, and signaling pathways. We also show that DH and PH populations split ∼45,000 years ago and have remained connected by gene-flow thereafter. Finally, we monitor the genomic impact of ∼110 years of captivity, revealing reduced heterozygosity, increased inbreeding, and variable introgression of domestic alleles, ranging from non-detectable to as much as 31.1%. This, together with the identification of ancestry informative markers and corrections to the International Studbook, establishes a framework for evaluating the persistence of genetic variation in future reintroduced populations.
Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Publication Date: 2015-09-24 PubMed ID: 26412128PubMed Central: PMC5104162DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2015.08.032Google Scholar: Lookup
The Equine Research Bank provides access to a large database of publicly available scientific literature. Inclusion in the Research Bank does not imply endorsement of study methods or findings by Mad Barn.
- Journal Article
- Research Support
- N.I.H.
- Extramural
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
- Research Support
- U.S. Gov't
- Non-P.H.S.
Summary
This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.
The research study was conducted to understand the genetic traits, evolution, and conservation challenges of Przewalski’s Horses, an endangered horse species. It used genomic sequencing to research the horse’s genetic differentiation from domesticated horses and highlighted the effects of inbreeding and captivity on their genetic variety.
Introduction and Background
- Przewalski’s Horses (PHs), found in the Asian steppes, are the last known true wild horses, discovered in the 1870s.
- These horses went extinct in the wild during the 1960s, but due to substantial conservation efforts, they survived in captivity.
- The present population, still classified as endangered, consists of just 2,109 individuals, one-fourth of which reside in reintroduction reserves in China and Mongolia.
- The unique physical and behavioral characteristics differentiate PHs from domesticated horses (DHs).
Methodology and Genome Sequencing
- The researchers sequenced the full genomes of 11 current PHs, covering every founding lineage, and five historical specimens from 1878 to 1929 CE.
- These sequences were compared to the most extensive existing genome dataset for horses, which includes 21 new genomes.
Findings on Genetic Differentiation
- Regions in the PH genome that exhibited the most noticeable genetic differentiation from DHs were found to be enriched with genes related to metabolism, cardiac disorders, muscle contraction, reproduction, behavior, and signaling pathways.
- The study discovered that the PH and DH populations separated approximately 45,000 years ago, but have remained connected by gene-flow since then.
Impact of Captivity and Inbreeding
- Approximately 110 years of captivity have had a noticeable impact on the PH’s genome, shown by reduced heterozygosity, increased inbreeding, and variable introgression (incorporation of a gene from one species into the gene pool of another) of domestic alleles ranging from non-detectable to as much as 31.1%.
Conservation and Future Research
- The identification of ancestry informative markers and corrections to the International Studbook create a framework for assessing the maintenance of genetic variation in reintroduced populations in the future.
Cite This Article
APA
(2015).
Evolutionary Genomics and Conservation of the Endangered Przewalski’s Horse.
Curr Biol, 25(19), 2577-2583.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2015.08.032 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Animals, Wild / genetics
- Biological Evolution
- Biomarkers / blood
- Breeding
- Conservation of Natural Resources
- Endangered Species
- Genetic Variation
- Genomics
- Horses / genetics
- Phylogeny
- Sequence Analysis, DNA
Grant Funding
- R01 GM040282 / NIGMS NIH HHS
- R01-GM40282 / NIGMS NIH HHS
References
This article includes 38 references
- Boyd L, King S. Equus ferus ssp przewalskii. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2011.
- Mohr E. Das Urwildpferd (Equus przewalski Poljakoff 1881) Mit 87 Abbildungen. Die Neue Brehm-Bücherei 249. Wittenberg Lutherstadt: 1959.
- Volf J, Kus E, Prokopova L. General Studbook of the Przewalski Horse. Zoological Garden Prague 1991.
- Zimmermann W. International Przewalski’s Horse Studbook (Equus ferus przewalskii). Cologne Zoo 2014.
- BENIRSCHKE K, MALOUF N, LOW RJ, HECK H. CHROMOSOME COMPLEMENT: DIFFERENCES BETWEEN EQUUS CABALLUS AND EQUUS PRZEWALSKII, POLIAKOFF.. Science 1965 Apr 16;148(3668):382-3.
- Ishida N, Oyunsuren T, Mashima S, Mukoyama H, Saitou N. Mitochondrial DNA sequences of various species of the genus Equus with special reference to the phylogenetic relationship between Przewalskii's wild horse and domestic horse.. J Mol Evol 1995 Aug;41(2):180-8.
- Oakenfull EA, Ryder OA. Mitochondrial control region and 12S rRNA variation in Przewalski's horse (Equus przewalskii).. Anim Genet 1998 Dec;29(6):456-9.
- Goto H, Ryder OA, Fisher AR, Schultz B, Kosakovsky Pond SL, Nekrutenko A, Makova KD. A massively parallel sequencing approach uncovers ancient origins and high genetic variability of endangered Przewalski's horses.. Genome Biol Evol 2011;3:1096-106.
- Bowling AT, Zimmermann W, Ryder O, Penado C, Peto S, Chemnick L, Yasinetskaya N, Zharkikh T. Genetic variation in Przewalski's horses, with special focus on the last wild caught mare, 231 Orlitza III.. Cytogenet Genome Res 2003;102(1-4):226-34.
- Wallner B, Brem G, Müller M, Achmann R. Fixed nucleotide differences on the Y chromosome indicate clear divergence between Equus przewalskii and Equus caballus.. Anim Genet 2003 Dec;34(6):453-6.
- Lau AN, Peng L, Goto H, Chemnick L, Ryder OA, Makova KD. Horse domestication and conservation genetics of Przewalski's horse inferred from sex chromosomal and autosomal sequences.. Mol Biol Evol 2009 Jan;26(1):199-208.
- Lindgren G, Backström N, Swinburne J, Hellborg L, Einarsson A, Sandberg K, Cothran G, Vilà C, Binns M, Ellegren H. Limited number of patrilines in horse domestication.. Nat Genet 2004 Apr;36(4):335-6.
- Wallner B, Vogl C, Shukla P, Burgstaller JP, Druml T, Brem G. Identification of genetic variation on the horse y chromosome and the tracing of male founder lineages in modern breeds.. PLoS One 2013;8(4):e60015.
- Wade CM, Giulotto E, Sigurdsson S, Zoli M, Gnerre S, Imsland F, Lear TL, Adelson DL, Bailey E, Bellone RR, Blöcker H, Distl O, Edgar RC, Garber M, Leeb T, Mauceli E, MacLeod JN, Penedo MC, Raison JM, Sharpe T, Vogel J, Andersson L, Antczak DF, Biagi T, Binns MM, Chowdhary BP, Coleman SJ, Della Valle G, Fryc S, Guérin G, Hasegawa T, Hill EW, Jurka J, Kiialainen A, Lindgren G, Liu J, Magnani E, Mickelson JR, Murray J, Nergadze SG, Onofrio R, Pedroni S, Piras MF, Raudsepp T, Rocchi M, Røed KH, Ryder OA, Searle S, Skow L, Swinburne JE, Syvänen AC, Tozaki T, Valberg SJ, Vaudin M, White JR, Zody MC, Lander ES, Lindblad-Toh K. Genome sequence, comparative analysis, and population genetics of the domestic horse.. Science 2009 Nov 6;326(5954):865-7.
- McCue ME, Bannasch DL, Petersen JL, Gurr J, Bailey E, Binns MM, Distl O, Guérin G, Hasegawa T, Hill EW, Leeb T, Lindgren G, Penedo MC, Røed KH, Ryder OA, Swinburne JE, Tozaki T, Valberg SJ, Vaudin M, Lindblad-Toh K, Wade CM, Mickelson JR. A high density SNP array for the domestic horse and extant Perissodactyla: utility for association mapping, genetic diversity, and phylogeny studies.. PLoS Genet 2012 Jan;8(1):e1002451.
- Orlando L, Ginolhac A, Zhang G, Froese D, Albrechtsen A, Stiller M, Schubert M, Cappellini E, Petersen B, Moltke I, Johnson PL, Fumagalli M, Vilstrup JT, Raghavan M, Korneliussen T, Malaspinas AS, Vogt J, Szklarczyk D, Kelstrup CD, Vinther J, Dolocan A, Stenderup J, Velazquez AM, Cahill J, Rasmussen M, Wang X, Min J, Zazula GD, Seguin-Orlando A, Mortensen C, Magnussen K, Thompson JF, Weinstock J, Gregersen K, Røed KH, Eisenmann V, Rubin CJ, Miller DC, Antczak DF, Bertelsen MF, Brunak S, Al-Rasheid KA, Ryder O, Andersson L, Mundy J, Krogh A, Gilbert MT, Kjær K, Sicheritz-Ponten T, Jensen LJ, Olsen JV, Hofreiter M, Nielsen R, Shapiro B, Wang J, Willerslev E. Recalibrating Equus evolution using the genome sequence of an early Middle Pleistocene horse.. Nature 2013 Jul 4;499(7456):74-8.
- Briggs AW, Stenzel U, Johnson PL, Green RE, Kelso J, Prüfer K, Meyer M, Krause J, Ronan MT, Lachmann M, Pääbo S. Patterns of damage in genomic DNA sequences from a Neandertal.. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2007 Sep 11;104(37):14616-21.
- Do KT, Kong HS, Lee JH, Lee HK, Cho BW, Kim HS, Ahn K, Park KD. Genomic characterization of the Przewalski׳s horse inhabiting Mongolian steppe by whole genome re-sequencing. Livest Sci 2014;167:86–91.
- Sawyer S, Krause J, Guschanski K, Savolainen V, Pääbo S. Temporal patterns of nucleotide misincorporations and DNA fragmentation in ancient DNA.. PLoS One 2012;7(3):e34131.
- Briggs AW, Stenzel U, Meyer M, Krause J, Kircher M, Pääbo S. Removal of deaminated cytosines and detection of in vivo methylation in ancient DNA.. Nucleic Acids Res 2010 Apr;38(6):e87.
- Schubert M, Jónsson H, Chang D, Der Sarkissian C, Ermini L, Ginolhac A, Albrechtsen A, Dupanloup I, Foucal A, Petersen B, Fumagalli M, Raghavan M, Seguin-Orlando A, Korneliussen TS, Velazquez AM, Stenderup J, Hoover CA, Rubin CJ, Alfarhan AH, Alquraishi SA, Al-Rasheid KA, MacHugh DE, Kalbfleisch T, MacLeod JN, Rubin EM, Sicheritz-Ponten T, Andersson L, Hofreiter M, Marques-Bonet T, Gilbert MT, Nielsen R, Excoffier L, Willerslev E, Shapiro B, Orlando L. Prehistoric genomes reveal the genetic foundation and cost of horse domestication.. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2014 Dec 30;111(52):E5661-9.
- Wallner B, Piumi F, Brem G, Müller M, Achmann R. Isolation of Y chromosome-specific microsatellites in the horse and cross-species amplification in the genus Equus.. J Hered 2004 Mar-Apr;95(2):158-64.
- Lippold S, Knapp M, Kuznetsova T, Leonard JA, Benecke N, Ludwig A, Rasmussen M, Cooper A, Weinstock J, Willerslev E, Shapiro B, Hofreiter M. Discovery of lost diversity of paternal horse lineages using ancient DNA.. Nat Commun 2011 Aug 23;2:450.
- Ghosh S, Qu Z, Das PJ, Fang E, Juras R, Cothran EG, McDonell S, Kenney DG, Lear TL, Adelson DL, Chowdhary BP, Raudsepp T. Copy number variation in the horse genome.. PLoS Genet 2014 Oct;10(10):e1004712.
- Soong BW, Casamassima AC, Fink JK, Constantopoulos G, Horwitz AL. Multiple sulfatase deficiency.. Neurology 1988 Aug;38(8):1273-5.
- Pavlidis P, Živkovic D, Stamatakis A, Alachiotis N. SweeD: likelihood-based detection of selective sweeps in thousands of genomes.. Mol Biol Evol 2013 Sep;30(9):2224-34.
- Ransom JI, Powers JG, Garbe HM, Oehler MW, Nett TM, Baker DL. Behavior of feral horses in response to culling and GnRH immunocontraception. Appl Anim Behav Sci 2014;157:81–92.
- Gutenkunst RN, Hernandez RD, Williamson SH, Bustamante CD. Inferring the joint demographic history of multiple populations from multidimensional SNP frequency data.. PLoS Genet 2009 Oct;5(10):e1000695.
- Yang MA, Harris K, Slatkin M. The projection of a test genome onto a reference population and applications to humans and archaic hominins.. Genetics 2014 Dec;198(4):1655-70.
- Cho YS, Hu L, Hou H, Lee H, Xu J, Kwon S, Oh S, Kim HM, Jho S, Kim S, Shin YA, Kim BC, Kim H, Kim CU, Luo SJ, Johnson WE, Koepfli KP, Schmidt-Küntzel A, Turner JA, Marker L, Harper C, Miller SM, Jacobs W, Bertola LD, Kim TH, Lee S, Zhou Q, Jung HJ, Xu X, Gadhvi P, Xu P, Xiong Y, Luo Y, Pan S, Gou C, Chu X, Zhang J, Liu S, He J, Chen Y, Yang L, Yang Y, He J, Liu S, Wang J, Kim CH, Kwak H, Kim JS, Hwang S, Ko J, Kim CB, Kim S, Bayarlkhagva D, Paek WK, Kim SJ, O'Brien SJ, Wang J, Bhak J. The tiger genome and comparative analysis with lion and snow leopard genomes.. Nat Commun 2013;4:2433.
- Cahill JA, Green RE, Fulton TL, Stiller M, Jay F, Ovsyanikov N, Salamzade R, St John J, Stirling I, Slatkin M, Shapiro B. Genomic evidence for island population conversion resolves conflicting theories of polar bear evolution.. PLoS Genet 2013;9(3):e1003345.
- Prüfer K, Racimo F, Patterson N, Jay F, Sankararaman S, Sawyer S, Heinze A, Renaud G, Sudmant PH, de Filippo C, Li H, Mallick S, Dannemann M, Fu Q, Kircher M, Kuhlwilm M, Lachmann M, Meyer M, Ongyerth M, Siebauer M, Theunert C, Tandon A, Moorjani P, Pickrell J, Mullikin JC, Vohr SH, Green RE, Hellmann I, Johnson PL, Blanche H, Cann H, Kitzman JO, Shendure J, Eichler EE, Lein ES, Bakken TE, Golovanova LV, Doronichev VB, Shunkov MV, Derevianko AP, Viola B, Slatkin M, Reich D, Kelso J, Pääbo S. The complete genome sequence of a Neanderthal from the Altai Mountains.. Nature 2014 Jan 2;505(7481):43-9.
- Skotte L, Korneliussen TS, Albrechtsen A. Estimating individual admixture proportions from next generation sequencing data.. Genetics 2013 Nov;195(3):693-702.
- Patterson N, Moorjani P, Luo Y, Mallick S, Rohland N, Zhan Y, Genschoreck T, Webster T, Reich D. Ancient admixture in human history.. Genetics 2012 Nov;192(3):1065-93.
- Durand EY, Patterson N, Reich D, Slatkin M. Testing for ancient admixture between closely related populations.. Mol Biol Evol 2011 Aug;28(8):2239-52.
- Pasaniuc B, Sankararaman S, Kimmel G, Halperin E. Inference of locus-specific ancestry in closely related populations.. Bioinformatics 2009 Jun 15;25(12):i213-21.
- Seal U, Lacy R, Zimmermann W, Ryder O, Princee F. Przewalski’s Horse, Equus przewalskii, Global Conservation Plan Draft. Captive Breeding Specialist Group (SSC/IUCN) 1990.
- Moehlman PDR. Equids: Zebras, Asses, and Horses: Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. IUCN 2002.
Citations
This article has been cited 68 times.- Ozogány K, Kerekes V, Fülöp A, Barta Z, Nagy M. Fine-scale collective movements reveal present, past and future dynamics of a multilevel society in Przewalski's horses.. Nat Commun 2023 Sep 5;14(1):5096.
- Noskova E, Abramov N, Iliutkin S, Sidorin A, Dobrynin P, Ulyantsev VI. GADMA2: more efficient and flexible demographic inference from genetic data.. Gigascience 2022 Dec 28;12.
- Umbach AK, Fernando C, Hill JE, Neufeld JD. Evaluating cpn60 for high-resolution profiling of the mammalian skin microbiome and detection of phylosymbiosis.. ISME Commun 2023 Jul 7;3(1):69.
- Todd ET, Fromentier A, Sutcliffe R, Running Horse Collin Y, Perdereau A, Aury JM, Èche C, Bouchez O, Donnadieu C, Wincker P, Kalbfleisch T, Petersen JL, Orlando L. Imputed genomes of historical horses provide insights into modern breeding.. iScience 2023 Jul 21;26(7):107104.
- Bozlak E, Radovic L, Remer V, Rigler D, Allen L, Brem G, Stalder G, Castaneda C, Cothran G, Raudsepp T, Okuda Y, Moe KK, Moe HH, Kounnavongsa B, Keonouchanh S, Van NH, Vu VH, Shah MK, Nishibori M, Kazymbet P, Bakhtin M, Zhunushov A, Paul RC, Dashnyam B, Nozawa K, Almarzook S, Brockmann GA, Reissmann M, Antczak DF, Miller DC, Sadeghi R, von Butler-Wemken I, Kostaras N, Han H, Manglai D, Abdurasulov A, Sukhbaatar B, Ropka-Molik K, Stefaniuk-Szmukier M, Lopes MS, da Câmara Machado A, Kalashnikov VV, Kalinkova L, Zaitev AM, Novoa-Bravo M, Lindgren G, Brooks S, Rosa LP, Orlando L, Juras R, Kunieda T, Wallner B. Refining the evolutionary tree of the horse Y chromosome.. Sci Rep 2023 Jun 2;13(1):8954.
- Piras FM, Cappelletti E, Abdelgadir WA, Salamon G, Vignati S, Santagostino M, Sola L, Nergadze SG, Giulotto E. A Satellite-Free Centromere in Equus przewalskii Chromosome 10.. Int J Mol Sci 2023 Feb 18;24(4).
- He Z, Dai X, Lyu W, Beaumont M, Yu F. Estimating Temporally Variable Selection Intensity from Ancient DNA Data.. Mol Biol Evol 2023 Mar 4;40(3).
- Turghan MA, Jiang Z, Niu Z. An Update on Status and Conservation of the Przewalski's Horse (Equus ferus przewalskii): Captive Breeding and Reintroduction Projects.. Animals (Basel) 2022 Nov 15;12(22).
- vonHoldt BM, Hinton JW, Shutt AC, Murphy SM, Karlin ML, Adams JR, Waits LP, Brzeski KE. Reviving ghost alleles: Genetically admixed coyotes along the American Gulf Coast are critical for saving the endangered red wolf.. Sci Adv 2022 Jul;8(26):eabn7731.
- Tang Y, Liu G, Zhao S, Li K, Zhang D, Liu S, Hu D. Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) Diversity of the Reintroduction Populations of Endangered Przewalski's Horse.. Genes (Basel) 2022 May 23;13(5).
- Maigrot AL, Hillmann E, Briefer EF. Cross-species discrimination of vocal expression of emotional valence by Equidae and Suidae.. BMC Biol 2022 May 24;20(1):106.
- Dehasque M, Pečnerová P, Kempe Lagerholm V, Ersmark E, Danilov GK, Mortensen P, Vartanyan S, Dalén L. Development and Optimization of a Silica Column-Based Extraction Protocol for Ancient DNA.. Genes (Basel) 2022 Apr 13;13(4).
- Hong JH, Oh CS, Kim S, Kang IU, Shin DH. Genetic analysis of mitochondrial DNA from ancient Equus caballus bones found at archaeological site of Joseon dynasty period capital area.. Anim Biosci 2022 Aug;35(8):1141-1150.
- Ababaikeri B, Zhang Y, Dai H, Shan W. Revealing the coexistence of differentiation and communication in an endemic hare, Lepus yarkandensis (Mammalia, Leporidae) using specific-length amplified fragment sequencing.. Front Zool 2021 Sep 26;18(1):50.
- Hanot P, Bayarsaikhan J, Guintard C, Haruda A, Mijiddorj E, Schafberg R, Taylor W. Cranial shape diversification in horses: variation and covariation patterns under the impact of artificial selection.. BMC Ecol Evol 2021 Sep 21;21(1):178.
- Hempel E, Westbury MV, Grau JH, Trinks A, Paijmans JLA, Kliver S, Barlow A, Mayer F, Müller J, Chen L, Koepfli KP, Hofreiter M, Bibi F. Diversity and Paleodemography of the Addax (Addax nasomaculatus), a Saharan Antelope on the Verge of Extinction.. Genes (Basel) 2021 Aug 11;12(8).
- de Jager D, Glanzmann B, Möller M, Hoal E, van Helden P, Harper C, Bloomer P. High diversity, inbreeding and a dynamic Pleistocene demographic history revealed by African buffalo genomes.. Sci Rep 2021 Feb 25;11(1):4540.
- Nedoluzhko AV, Rastorguev SM, Simonov E, Boulygina ES, Sharko FS, Tsygankova SV, Gabrielyan BK, Roubenyan HR, Levin BA. Two complete mitochondrial genomes of extinct form of the Sevan trout Salmo ischchan danilewskii.. Mitochondrial DNA B Resour 2017 Dec 21;3(1):40-41.
- Vorobieva NV, Makunin AI, Druzhkova AS, Kusliy MA, Trifonov VA, Popova KO, Polosmak NV, Molodin VI, Vasiliev SK, Shunkov MV, Graphodatsky AS. High genetic diversity of ancient horses from the Ukok Plateau.. PLoS One 2020;15(11):e0241997.
- Liu C, Lei H, Ran X, Wang J. Genetic variation and selection in the major histocompatibility complex Class II gene in the Guizhou pony.. PeerJ 2020;8:e9889.
- Guimaraes S, Arbuckle BS, Peters J, Adcock SE, Buitenhuis H, Chazin H, Manaseryan N, Uerpmann HP, Grange T, Geigl EM. Ancient DNA shows domestic horses were introduced in the southern Caucasus and Anatolia during the Bronze Age.. Sci Adv 2020 Sep;6(38).
- Valberg SJ, Finno CJ, Henry ML, Schott M, Velez-Irizarry D, Peng S, McKenzie EC, Petersen JL. Commercial genetic testing for type 2 polysaccharide storage myopathy and myofibrillar myopathy does not correspond to a histopathological diagnosis.. Equine Vet J 2021 Jul;53(4):690-700.
- He Z, Dai X, Beaumont M, Yu F. Detecting and Quantifying Natural Selection at Two Linked Loci from Time Series Data of Allele Frequencies with Forward-in-Time Simulations.. Genetics 2020 Oct;216(2):521-541.
- He Z, Dai X, Beaumont M, Yu F. Estimation of Natural Selection and Allele Age from Time Series Allele Frequency Data Using a Novel Likelihood-Based Approach.. Genetics 2020 Oct;216(2):463-480.
- Funk SM, Guedaoura S, Juras R, Raziq A, Landolsi F, Luís C, Martínez AM, Musa Mayaki A, Mujica F, Oom MDM, Ouragh L, Stranger YM, Vega-Pla JL, Cothran EG. Major inconsistencies of inferred population genetic structure estimated in a large set of domestic horse breeds using microsatellites.. Ecol Evol 2020 May;10(10):4261-4279.
- Etherington GJ, Heavens D, Baker D, Lister A, McNelly R, Garcia G, Clavijo B, Macaulay I, Haerty W, Di Palma F. Sequencing smart: De novo sequencing and assembly approaches for a non-model mammal.. Gigascience 2020 May 1;9(5).
- Todd ET, Hamilton NA, Velie BD, Thomson PC. The effects of inbreeding on covering success, gestation length and foal sex ratio in Australian thoroughbred horses.. BMC Genet 2020 Apr 8;21(1):41.
- Hou Y, Qi F, Bai X, Ren T, Shen X, Chu Q, Zhang X, Lu X. Genome-wide analysis reveals molecular convergence underlying domestication in 7 bird and mammals.. BMC Genomics 2020 Mar 4;21(1):204.
- Kioukis A, Michalopoulou VA, Briers L, Pirintsos S, Studholme DJ, Pavlidis P, Sarris PF. Intraspecific diversification of the crop wild relative Brassica cretica Lam. using demographic model selection.. BMC Genomics 2020 Jan 14;21(1):48.
- Ning T, Ling Y, Hu S, Ardalan A, Li J, Mitra B, Chaudhuri TK, Guan W, Zhao Q, Ma Y, Savolainen P, Zhang Y. Local origin or external input: modern horse origin in East Asia.. BMC Evol Biol 2019 Nov 27;19(1):217.
- Raudsepp T, Finno CJ, Bellone RR, Petersen JL. Ten years of the horse reference genome: insights into equine biology, domestication and population dynamics in the post-genome era.. Anim Genet 2019 Dec;50(6):569-597.
- Evangelou A, Ignatiou A, Antoniou C, Kalanidou S, Chatzimatthaiou S, Shianiou G, Ellina S, Athanasiou R, Panagi M, Apidianakis Y, Pitsouli C. Unpredictable Effects of the Genetic Background of Transgenic Lines in Physiological Quantitative Traits.. G3 (Bethesda) 2019 Nov 5;9(11):3877-3890.
- Orlando L, Librado P. Origin and Evolution of Deleterious Mutations in Horses.. Genes (Basel) 2019 Aug 28;10(9).
- Kvist L, Niskanen M, Mannermaa K, Wutke S, Aspi J. Genetic variability and history of a native Finnish horse breed.. Genet Sel Evol 2019 Jul 1;51(1):35.
- Renaud G, Hanghøj K, Korneliussen TS, Willerslev E, Orlando L. Joint Estimates of Heterozygosity and Runs of Homozygosity for Modern and Ancient Samples.. Genetics 2019 Jul;212(3):587-614.
- Fages A, Hanghøj K, Khan N, Gaunitz C, Seguin-Orlando A, Leonardi M, McCrory Constantz C, Gamba C, Al-Rasheid KAS, Albizuri S, Alfarhan AH, Allentoft M, Alquraishi S, Anthony D, Baimukhanov N, Barrett JH, Bayarsaikhan J, Benecke N, Bernáldez-Sánchez E, Berrocal-Rangel L, Biglari F, Boessenkool S, Boldgiv B, Brem G, Brown D, Burger J, Crubézy E, Daugnora L, Davoudi H, de Barros Damgaard P, de Los Ángeles de Chorro Y de Villa-Ceballos M, Deschler-Erb S, Detry C, Dill N, do Mar Oom M, Dohr A, Ellingvåg S, Erdenebaatar D, Fathi H, Felkel S, Fernández-Rodríguez C, García-Viñas E, Germonpré M, Granado JD, Hallsson JH, Hemmer H, Hofreiter M, Kasparov A, Khasanov M, Khazaeli R, Kosintsev P, Kristiansen K, Kubatbek T, Kuderna L, Kuznetsov P, Laleh H, Leonard JA, Lhuillier J, Liesau von Lettow-Vorbeck C, Logvin A, Lõugas L, Ludwig A, Luis C, Arruda AM, Marques-Bonet T, Matoso Silva R, Merz V, Mijiddorj E, Miller BK, Monchalov O, Mohaseb FA, Morales A, Nieto-Espinet A, Nistelberger H, Onar V, Pálsdóttir AH, Pitulko V, Pitskhelauri K, Pruvost M, Rajic Sikanjic P, Rapan Papeša A, Roslyakova N, Sardari A, Sauer E, Schafberg R, Scheu A, Schibler J, Schlumbaum A, Serrand N, Serres-Armero A, Shapiro B, Sheikhi Seno S, Shevnina I, Shidrang S, Southon J, Star B, Sykes N, Taheri K, Taylor W, Teegen WR, Trbojević Vukičević T, Trixl S, Tumen D, Undrakhbold S, Usmanova E, Vahdati A, Valenzuela-Lamas S, Viegas C, Wallner B, Weinstock J, Zaibert V, Clavel B, Lepetz S, Mashkour M, Helgason A, Stefánsson K, Barrey E, Willerslev E, Outram AK, Librado P, Orlando L. Tracking Five Millennia of Horse Management with Extensive Ancient Genome Time Series.. Cell 2019 May 30;177(6):1419-1435.e31.
- Felkel S, Vogl C, Rigler D, Dobretsberger V, Chowdhary BP, Distl O, Fries R, Jagannathan V, Janečka JE, Leeb T, Lindgren G, McCue M, Metzger J, Neuditschko M, Rattei T, Raudsepp T, Rieder S, Rubin CJ, Schaefer R, Schlötterer C, Thaller G, Tetens J, Velie B, Brem G, Wallner B. The horse Y chromosome as an informative marker for tracing sire lines.. Sci Rep 2019 Apr 15;9(1):6095.
- Seong HS, Kim NY, Kim DC, Hwang NH, Son DH, Shin JS, Lee JH, Chung WH, Choi JW. Whole genome sequencing analysis of horse populations inhabiting the Korean Peninsula and Przewalski's horse.. Genes Genomics 2019 Jun;41(6):621-628.
- Galla SJ, Forsdick NJ, Brown L, Hoeppner MP, Knapp M, Maloney RF, Moraga R, Santure AW, Steeves TE. Reference Genomes from Distantly Related Species Can Be Used for Discovery of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms to Inform Conservation Management.. Genes (Basel) 2018 Dec 22;10(1).
- Jensen EL, Edwards DL, Garrick RC, Miller JM, Gibbs JP, Cayot LJ, Tapia W, Caccone A, Russello MA. Population genomics through time provides insights into the consequences of decline and rapid demographic recovery through head-starting in a Galapagos giant tortoise.. Evol Appl 2018 Dec;11(10):1811-1821.
- Yoon SH, Lee W, Ahn H, Caetano-Anolles K, Park KD, Kim H. Origin and spread of Thoroughbred racehorses inferred from complete mitochondrial genome sequences: Phylogenomic and Bayesian coalescent perspectives.. PLoS One 2018;13(9):e0203917.
- Hooper R, Brealey JC, van der Valk T, Alberdi A, Durban JW, Fearnbach H, Robertson KM, Baird RW, Bradley Hanson M, Wade P, Gilbert MTP, Morin PA, Wolf JBW, Foote AD, Guschanski K. Host-derived population genomics data provides insights into bacterial and diatom composition of the killer whale skin.. Mol Ecol 2019 Jan;28(2):484-502.
- Leonardi M, Boschin F, Giampoudakis K, Beyer RM, Krapp M, Bendrey R, Sommer R, Boscato P, Manica A, Nogues-Bravo D, Orlando L. Late Quaternary horses in Eurasia in the face of climate and vegetation change.. Sci Adv 2018 Jul;4(7):eaar5589.
- Leroy G, Carroll EL, Bruford MW, DeWoody JA, Strand A, Waits L, Wang J. Next-generation metrics for monitoring genetic erosion within populations of conservation concern.. Evol Appl 2018 Aug;11(7):1066-1083.
- Zhang C, Ni P, Ahmad HI, Gemingguli M, Baizilaitibei A, Gulibaheti D, Fang Y, Wang H, Asif AR, Xiao C, Chen J, Ma Y, Liu X, Du X, Zhao S. Detecting the Population Structure and Scanning for Signatures of Selection in Horses (Equus caballus) From Whole-Genome Sequencing Data.. Evol Bioinform Online 2018;14:1176934318775106.
- Wutke S, Sandoval-Castellanos E, Benecke N, Döhle HJ, Friederich S, Gonzalez J, Hofreiter M, Lõugas L, Magnell O, Malaspinas AS, Morales-Muñiz A, Orlando L, Reissmann M, Trinks A, Ludwig A. Decline of genetic diversity in ancient domestic stallions in Europe.. Sci Adv 2018 Apr;4(4):eaap9691.
- Alberto FJ, Boyer F, Orozco-terWengel P, Streeter I, Servin B, de Villemereuil P, Benjelloun B, Librado P, Biscarini F, Colli L, Barbato M, Zamani W, Alberti A, Engelen S, Stella A, Joost S, Ajmone-Marsan P, Negrini R, Orlando L, Rezaei HR, Naderi S, Clarke L, Flicek P, Wincker P, Coissac E, Kijas J, Tosser-Klopp G, Chikhi A, Bruford MW, Taberlet P, Pompanon F. Convergent genomic signatures of domestication in sheep and goats.. Nat Commun 2018 Mar 6;9(1):813.
- Khaudov AD, Duduev AS, Kokov ZA, Amshokov KK, Zhekamukhov MK, Zaitsev AM, Reissmann M. Genetic analysis of maternal and paternal lineages in Kabardian horses by uniparental molecular markers.. Open Vet J 2018;8(1):40-46.
- Segawa T, Takeuchi N, Fujita K, Aizen VB, Willerslev E, Yonezawa T. Demographic analysis of cyanobacteria based on the mutation rates estimated from an ancient ice core.. Heredity (Edinb) 2018 Jun;120(6):562-573.
- Metcalf JL, Song SJ, Morton JT, Weiss S, Seguin-Orlando A, Joly F, Feh C, Taberlet P, Coissac E, Amir A, Willerslev E, Knight R, McKenzie V, Orlando L. Evaluating the impact of domestication and captivity on the horse gut microbiome.. Sci Rep 2017 Nov 14;7(1):15497.
- Benazzo A, Trucchi E, Cahill JA, Maisano Delser P, Mona S, Fumagalli M, Bunnefeld L, Cornetti L, Ghirotto S, Girardi M, Ometto L, Panziera A, Rota-Stabelli O, Zanetti E, Karamanlidis A, Groff C, Paule L, Gentile L, Vilà C, Vicario S, Boitani L, Orlando L, Fuselli S, Vernesi C, Shapiro B, Ciucci P, Bertorelle G. Survival and divergence in a small group: The extraordinary genomic history of the endangered Apennine brown bear stragglers.. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2017 Nov 7;114(45):E9589-E9597.
- Maigrot AL, Hillmann E, Anne C, Briefer EF. Vocal expression of emotional valence in Przewalski's horses (Equus przewalskii).. Sci Rep 2017 Aug 18;7(1):8779.
- Schaefer RJ, Schubert M, Bailey E, Bannasch DL, Barrey E, Bar-Gal GK, Brem G, Brooks SA, Distl O, Fries R, Finno CJ, Gerber V, Haase B, Jagannathan V, Kalbfleisch T, Leeb T, Lindgren G, Lopes MS, Mach N, da Câmara Machado A, MacLeod JN, McCoy A, Metzger J, Penedo C, Polani S, Rieder S, Tammen I, Tetens J, Thaller G, Verini-Supplizi A, Wade CM, Wallner B, Orlando L, Mickelson JR, McCue ME. Developing a 670k genotyping array to tag ~2M SNPs across 24 horse breeds.. BMC Genomics 2017 Jul 27;18(1):565.
- Neuditschko M, Raadsma HW, Khatkar MS, Jonas E, Steinig EJ, Flury C, Signer-Hasler H, Frischknecht M, von Niederhäusern R, Leeb T, Rieder S. Identification of key contributors in complex population structures.. PLoS One 2017;12(5):e0177638.
- Yoon SH, Kim J, Shin D, Cho S, Kwak W, Lee HK, Park KD, Kim H. Complete mitochondrial genome sequences of Korean native horse from Jeju Island: uncovering the spatio-temporal dynamics.. Mol Biol Rep 2017 Apr;44(2):233-242.
- Braud M, Magee DA, Park SD, Sonstegard TS, Waters SM, MacHugh DE, Spillane C. Genome-Wide microRNA Binding Site Variation between Extinct Wild Aurochs and Modern Cattle Identifies Candidate microRNA-Regulated Domestication Genes.. Front Genet 2017;8:3.
- Leonardi M, Librado P, Der Sarkissian C, Schubert M, Alfarhan AH, Alquraishi SA, Al-Rasheid KA, Gamba C, Willerslev E, Orlando L. Evolutionary Patterns and Processes: Lessons from Ancient DNA.. Syst Biol 2017 Jan 1;66(1):e1-e29.
- Abascal F, Corvelo A, Cruz F, Villanueva-Cañas JL, Vlasova A, Marcet-Houben M, Martínez-Cruz B, Cheng JY, Prieto P, Quesada V, Quilez J, Li G, García F, Rubio-Camarillo M, Frias L, Ribeca P, Capella-Gutiérrez S, Rodríguez JM, Câmara F, Lowy E, Cozzuto L, Erb I, Tress ML, Rodriguez-Ales JL, Ruiz-Orera J, Reverter F, Casas-Marce M, Soriano L, Arango JR, Derdak S, Galán B, Blanc J, Gut M, Lorente-Galdos B, Andrés-Nieto M, López-Otín C, Valencia A, Gut I, García JL, Guigó R, Murphy WJ, Ruiz-Herrera A, Marques-Bonet T, Roma G, Notredame C, Mailund T, Albà MM, Gabaldón T, Alioto T, Godoy JA. Extreme genomic erosion after recurrent demographic bottlenecks in the highly endangered Iberian lynx.. Genome Biol 2016 Dec 14;17(1):251.
- Wutke S, Benecke N, Sandoval-Castellanos E, Döhle HJ, Friederich S, Gonzalez J, Hallsson JH, Hofreiter M, Lõugas L, Magnell O, Morales-Muniz A, Orlando L, Pálsdóttir AH, Reissmann M, Ruttkay M, Trinks A, Ludwig A. Spotted phenotypes in horses lost attractiveness in the Middle Ages.. Sci Rep 2016 Dec 7;6:38548.
- Librado P, Fages A, Gaunitz C, Leonardi M, Wagner S, Khan N, Hanghøj K, Alquraishi SA, Alfarhan AH, Al-Rasheid KA, Der Sarkissian C, Schubert M, Orlando L. The Evolutionary Origin and Genetic Makeup of Domestic Horses.. Genetics 2016 Oct;204(2):423-434.
- Hanghøj K, Seguin-Orlando A, Schubert M, Madsen T, Pedersen JS, Willerslev E, Orlando L. Fast, Accurate and Automatic Ancient Nucleosome and Methylation Maps with epiPALEOMIX.. Mol Biol Evol 2016 Dec;33(12):3284-3298.
- Irizarry KJ, Bryant D, Kalish J, Eng C, Schmidt PL, Barrett G, Barr MC. Integrating Genomic Data Sets for Knowledge Discovery: An Informed Approach to Management of Captive Endangered Species.. Int J Genomics 2016;2016:2374610.
- Orlando L. Back to the roots and routes of dromedary domestication.. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2016 Jun 14;113(24):6588-90.
- Reissmann M, Musa L, Zakizadeh S, Ludwig A. Distribution of coat-color-associated alleles in the domestic horse population and Przewalski's horse.. J Appl Genet 2016 Nov;57(4):519-525.
- Almathen F, Charruau P, Mohandesan E, Mwacharo JM, Orozco-terWengel P, Pitt D, Abdussamad AM, Uerpmann M, Uerpmann HP, De Cupere B, Magee P, Alnaqeeb MA, Salim B, Raziq A, Dessie T, Abdelhadi OM, Banabazi MH, Al-Eknah M, Walzer C, Faye B, Hofreiter M, Peters J, Hanotte O, Burger PA. Ancient and modern DNA reveal dynamics of domestication and cross-continental dispersal of the dromedary.. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2016 Jun 14;113(24):6707-12.
- Schraiber JG, Evans SN, Slatkin M. Bayesian Inference of Natural Selection from Allele Frequency Time Series.. Genetics 2016 May;203(1):493-511.
- Callaway E. When chickens go wild.. Nature 2016 Jan 21;529(7586):270-3.
- Librado P, Der Sarkissian C, Ermini L, Schubert M, Jónsson H, Albrechtsen A, Fumagalli M, Yang MA, Gamba C, Seguin-Orlando A, Mortensen CD, Petersen B, Hoover CA, Lorente-Galdos B, Nedoluzhko A, Boulygina E, Tsygankova S, Neuditschko M, Jagannathan V, Thèves C, Alfarhan AH, Alquraishi SA, Al-Rasheid KA, Sicheritz-Ponten T, Popov R, Grigoriev S, Alekseev AN, Rubin EM, McCue M, Rieder S, Leeb T, Tikhonov A, Crubézy E, Slatkin M, Marques-Bonet T, Nielsen R, Willerslev E, Kantanen J, Prokhortchouk E, Orlando L. Tracking the origins of Yakutian horses and the genetic basis for their fast adaptation to subarctic environments.. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2015 Dec 15;112(50):E6889-97.
Use Nutrition Calculator
Check if your horse's diet meets their nutrition requirements with our easy-to-use tool Check your horse's diet with our easy-to-use tool
Talk to a Nutritionist
Discuss your horse's feeding plan with our experts over a free phone consultation Discuss your horse's diet over a phone consultation
Submit Diet Evaluation
Get a customized feeding plan for your horse formulated by our equine nutritionists Get a custom feeding plan formulated by our nutritionists