Microsatellite DNA typing for assessment of genetic variability in taihu goose: A major breed of China

The present study estimates genetic variability with a set of 26 microsatellite markers in a random sample of 60 animals of Taihu goose of China. Taihu goose is a dual-purpose breed, valued for its meat as well as down feather. It is famous for its good meat quality, high production and strong adaptability. Microsatellite genotypes were derived and allelic and genotypic frequencies, hererozygosities and gene diversity were estimated. A total of 87 alleles were distinguished. All the microsatellites were polymorphic, with mean allelic number of 3.1, ranging 2-6 locus(-1). Observed and expected heterozygosity ranged from 0.209-1.000 and from 0.276-0.769, respectively. Wide range of genetic variability supported the utility of these microsatellite loci in measurement of genetic diversity indices in other Chinese goose breeds too. Various average genetic variability measures, namely observed heterozygosity (0.829), expected heterozygosity (0.545) and mean polymorphism information content (0.464) values showed substantial within-breed genetic variability in this major breed of China, the F-IS values also supported low levels of inbreeding in the population (F-IS = -0.531). Genetic bottleneck hypotheses were also explored. The data suggest that the Taihu goose population has experienced a genetic bottleneck in the recent past.