Single nucleotide polymorphisms for parentage testing of horse breeds in Korea.

The research article investigates the effectiveness of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for parentage testing in various horse breeds in Korea.

Objective of the Study

• The aim of the research was to evaluate how effective single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) – which are the most common type of genetic variation among people – could be in testing the parentage of different horse breeds in Korea.

Methodology

• 93 horse samples belonging to different breeds including Thoroughbred horses, Jeju horses, Quarter horses, and American miniature horses were tested. These genotypes were determined using 15 microsatellite markers and 101 SNP markers.
• Paternity tests were conducted using these markers on Thoroughbred horses and Quarter horses.

Findings

• A number of microsatellite markers did not follow traditional Mendelian inheritance in Thoroughbred horses, and only a few showed Mendelian inheritance in Quarter horses. As a result, these markers were unable to establish parentage.
• Almost a third of Markers in the Thoroughbred horses and Quarter horses did not conform with Mendelian inheritance, which again made it impossible for them to establish parentage.

Conclusion

• The study managed to confirm the possibility of using SNP markers to test for paternity in horses, potentially replacing traditional microsatellite markers. More research is however required using a larger sample size to substantiate these findings.