The genomics of adaptation to climate in European great tit (Parus major) populations

The recognition that climate change is occurring at an unprecedented rate means that there is increased urgency in understanding how organisms can adapt to a changing environment. Wild great tit (Parus major) populations represent an attractive ecological model system to understand the genomics of climate adaptation. They are widely distributed across Eurasia and they have been documented to respond to climate change. We performed a Bayesian genome-environment analysis, by combining local climate data with single nucleotide polymorphisms genotype data from 20 European populations (broadly spanning the species' continental range). We found 36 genes putatively linked to adaptation to climate. Following an enrichment analysis of biological process Gene Ontology (GO) terms, we identified over-represented terms and pathways among the candidate genes. Because many different genes and GO terms are associated with climate variables, it seems likely that climate adaptation is polygenic and genetically complex. Our findings also suggest that geographical climate adaptation has been occurring since great tits left their Southern European refugia at the end of the last ice age. Finally, we show that substantial climate-associated genetic variation remains, which will be essential for adaptation to future changes.

Genomic footprints of (pre) colonialism: Population declines in urban and forest túngara frogs coincident with historical human activity

Urbanisation is rapidly altering ecosystems, leading to profound biodiversity loss. To mitigate these effects, we need a better understanding of how urbanisation impacts dispersal and reproduction. Two contrasting population demographic models have been proposed that predict that urbanisation either promotes (facilitation model) or constrains (fragmentation model) gene flow and genetic diversity. Which of these models prevails likely depends on the strength of selection on specific phenotypic traits that influence dispersal, survival, or reproduction. Here, we a priori examined the genomic impact of urbanisation on the Neotropical túngara frog (Engystomops pustulosus), a species known to adapt its reproductive traits to urban selective pressures. Using whole-genome resequencing for multiple urban and forest populations we examined genomic diversity, population connectivity and demographic history. Contrary to both the fragmentation and facilitation models, urban populations did not exhibit substantial changes in genomic diversity or differentiation compared with forest populations, and genomic variation was best explained by geographic distance rather than environmental factors. Adopting an a posteriori approach, we additionally found both urban and forest populations to have undergone population declines. The timing of these declines appears to coincide with extensive human activity around the Panama Canal during the last few centuries rather than recent urbanisation. Our study highlights the long-lasting legacy of past anthropogenic disturbances in the genome and the importance of considering the historical context in urban evolution studies as anthropogenic effects may be extensive and impact nonurban areas on both recent and older timescales.

The rate of de novo structural variation is increased in in vitro-produced offspring and preferentially affects the paternal genome

Assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs), including in vitro maturation and fertilization (IVF), are increasingly used in human and animal reproduction. Whether these technologies directly affect the rate of de novo mutation (DNM), and to what extent, has been a matter of debate. Here we take advantage of domestic cattle, characterized by complex pedigrees that are ideally suited to detect DNMs and by the systematic use of ART, to study the rate of de novo structural variation (dnSV) in this species and how it is impacted by IVF. By exploiting features of associated de novo point mutations (dnPMs) and dnSVs in clustered DNMs, we provide strong evidence that (1) IVF increases the rate of dnSV approximately fivefold, and (2) the corresponding mutations occur during the very early stages of embryonic development (one- and two-cell stage), yet primarily affect the paternal genome.

High-resolution structural variants catalogue in a large-scale whole genome sequenced bovine family cohort data

BACKGROUND

Structural variants (SVs) are chromosomal segments that differ between genomes, such as deletions, duplications, insertions, inversions and translocations. The genomics revolution enabled the discovery of sub-microscopic SVs via array and whole-genome sequencing (WGS) data, paving the way to unravel the functional impact of SVs. Recent human expression QTL mapping studies demonstrated that SVs play a disproportionally large role in altering gene expression, underlining the importance of including SVs in genetic analyses. Therefore, this study aimed to generate and explore a high-quality bovine SV catalogue exploiting a unique cattle family cohort data (total 266 samples, forming 127 trios).

RESULTS

We curated 13,731 SVs segregating in the population, consisting of 12,201 deletions, 1,509 duplications, and 21 multi-allelic CNVs (> 50-bp). Of these, we validated a subset of copy number variants (CNVs) utilising a direct genotyping approach in an independent cohort, indicating that at least 62% of the CNVs are true variants, segregating in the population. Among gene-disrupting SVs, we prioritised two likely high impact duplications, encompassing ORM1 and POPDC3 genes, respectively. Liver expression QTL mapping results revealed that these duplications are likely causing altered gene expression, confirming the functional importance of SVs. Although most of the accurately genotyped CNVs are tagged by single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) ascertained in WGS data, most CNVs were not captured by individual SNPs obtained from a 50K genotyping array.

CONCLUSION

We generated a high-quality SV catalogue exploiting unique whole genome sequenced bovine family cohort data. Two high impact duplications upregulating the ORM1 and POPDC3 are putative candidates for postpartum feed intake and hoof health traits, thus warranting further investigation. Generally, CNVs were in low LD with SNPs on the 50K array. Hence, it remains crucial to incorporate CNVs via means other than tagging SNPs, such as investigation of tagging haplotypes, direct imputation of CNVs, or direct genotyping as done in the current study. The SV catalogue and the custom genotyping array generated in the current study will serve as valuable resources accelerating utilisation of full spectrum of genetic variants in bovine genomes.

Genomic insight into the influence of selection, crossbreeding, and geography on population structure in poultry

BACKGROUND

In poultry, the population structure of local breeds is usually complex mainly due to unrecorded breeding. Local chicken breeds offer an interesting proxy to understand the complexity of population structure in the context of human-mediated development of diverse morphologies and varieties. We studied 37 traditional Dutch chicken breeds to investigate population structure and the corresponding genomic impact using whole-genome sequence data.

RESULTS

Looking at the genetic differences between breeds, the Dutch chicken breeds demonstrated a complex and admixed subdivided structure. The dissection of this complexity highlighted the influence of selection adhering to management purposes, as well as the role of geographic distance within subdivided breed clusters. Identification of signatures of genetic differentiation revealed genomic regions that are associated with diversifying phenotypic selection between breeds, including dwarf size (bantam) and feather color. In addition, with a case study of a recently developed bantam breed developed by crossbreeding, we provide a genomic perspective on the effect of crossbreeding.

CONCLUSIONS

This study demonstrates the complex population structure of local traditional Dutch chicken, and provides insight into the genomic basis and the factors involved in the formation of this complexity.

Distinct traces of mixed ancestry in western commercial pig genomes following gene flow from Chinese indigenous breeds

Studying gene flow between different livestock breeds will benefit the discovery of genes related to production traits and provide insight into human historical breeding. Chinese pigs have played an indispensable role in the breeding of Western commercial pigs. However, the differences in the timing and volume of the contribution of pigs from different Chinese regions to Western pigs are not yet apparent. In this paper, we combine the whole-genome sequencing data of 592 pigs from different studies and illustrate patterns of gene flow from Chinese pigs into Western commercial pigs. We describe introgression patterns from four distinct Chinese indigenous groups into five Western commercial groups. There were considerable differences in the number and length of the putative introgressed segments from Chinese pig groups that contributed to Western commercial pig breeds. The contribution of pigs from different Chinese geographical locations to a given western commercial breed varied more than that from a specific Chinese pig group to different Western commercial breeds, implying admixture within Europe after introgression. Within different Western commercial lines from the same breed, the introgression patterns from a given Chinese pig group seemed highly conserved, suggesting that introgression of Chinese pigs into Western commercial pig breeds mainly occurred at an early stage of breed formation. Finally, based on analyses of introgression signals, allele frequencies, and selection footprints, we identified a ∼2.65 Mb Chinese-derived haplotype under selection in Duroc pigs (CHR14: 95.68-98.33 Mb). Functional and phenotypic studies demonstrate that this PRKG1 haplotype is related to backfat and loin depth in Duroc pigs. Overall, we demonstrate that the introgression history of domestic pigs is complex and that Western commercial pigs contain distinct traces of mixed ancestry, likely derived from various Chinese pig breeds.

Unique genetic signature and selection footprints in Dutch population of German Longhaired Pointer dogs

The German Longhaired Pointer (GLP) breed is a versatile pointer dog breed. In the current study, we investigated the genetic diversity of these dogs based on SNP array data and compared it to 11 other pointer setter breeds. The results show that GLPs have a relatively low level of inbreeding among these pointer breeds. In addition, with the availability of pedigree information of the GLPs, we demonstrate that the correlation between pedigree-based inbreeding and genotype-based inbreeding coefficients was high (R = 0.89 and 0.85). By investigating population structure between these 12 pointer setter breeds we showed that GLP is a breed distinct from other pointers and shares common ancestry with a few other pointing breeds. Finally, we identified selection signatures in GLPs using the runs of homozygosity islands method. The most significant runs of homozygosity island was detected on chromosome 30 harboring the genes RYR3, FMN1, and GREM1. The RYR3 gene plays a role in skeletal muscle contraction while the FMN1 and GREM1 genes are involved in limb development. The selection on these three genes could have contributed to the excellent athletic performance of GLPs, which is an extremely important characteristic for this hunting dog.

Maximum longevity and juvenile mortality in zoo-housed mangabeys

Little is known about the biology of grey-cheeked and black crested mangabeys (Lophocebus albigena and Lophocebus aterrimus, respectively). As these primates face threats in the wild, well-monitored zoo-housed populations with up to date registries are becoming increasingly valuable to acquire species knowledge and to support conservation efforts. We used international studbooks to extract demographic and genetic information on 519 mangabeys to investigate how life history and parent-related variables influence maximum longevity and juvenile mortality. Generalized linear mixed models, as well as survival analyses, were applied. Results showed that females lived significantly longer than males, which is not uncommon in primates. Furthermore, our results indicated that the maximum longevity is lower for individuals living in European zoos versus individuals from North American zoos, which may be due to a combination of environmental differences and potential founder effects. We also show that the maternal maximum longevity is positively related to the maximum longevity of the offspring, which may be explained by the inheritance of "good genes". However, the age of the mother at the moment of birth was negatively related to the maximum longevity of the offspring, which contradicts literature that states that, in primates, more experienced and thus older mothers will raise their offspring better than less experienced mothers. Instead, it is more likely that an "optimal age range" exists for breeding mothers. Our study provides insights into the population biology of captive mangabeys and may be helpful for identifying future research priorities to optimize primate health and welfare directly ex situ, and indirectly in situ.

Challenges in quantifying genome erosion for conservation

Massive defaunation and high extinction rates have become characteristic of the Anthropocene. Genetic effects of population decline can lead populations into an extinction vortex, where declining populations show lower genetic fitness, in turn leading to lower populations still. The lower genetic fitness in a declining population due to a shrinking gene pool is known as genetic erosion. Three different types of genetic erosion are highlighted in this review: overall homozygosity, genetic load and runs of homozygosity (ROH), which are indicative of inbreeding. The ability to quantify genetic erosion could be a very helpful tool for conservationists, as it can provide them with an objective, quantifiable measure to use in the assessment of species at risk of extinction. The link between conservation status and genetic erosion should become more apparent. Currently, no clear correlation can be observed between the current conservation status and genetic erosion. However, the high quantities of genetic erosion in wild populations, especially in those species dealing with habitat fragmentation and habitat decline, may be early signs of deteriorating populations. Whole genome sequencing data is the way forward to quantify genetic erosion. Extra screening steps for genetic load and hybridization can be included, since they could potentially have great impact on population fitness. This way, the information yielded from genetic sequence data can provide conservationists with an objective genetic method in the assessment of species at risk of extinction. However, the great complexity of genome erosion quantification asks for consensus and bridging science and its applications, which remains challenging.

The Visayan warty pig (Sus cebifrons) genome provides insight into chromosome evolution and sensory adaptation in pigs

It is largely unknown how mammalian genomes evolve under rapid speciation and environmental adaptation. An excellent model for understanding fast evolution is provided by the genus Sus, which diverged relatively recently and lacks post-zygotic isolation. Here, we present a high-quality reference genome of the Visayan warty pig, which is specialized to a tropical island environment. Comparing the genome sequences and chromatin contact maps of the Visayan warty pig (Sus cebifrons) and domestic pig (Sus scrofa), we characterized the dynamics of chromosomal structure evolution during Sus speciation, revealing the similar chromosome conformation as the potential biological mechanism of frequent post-divergence hybridization among Suidae. We further investigated the different signatures of adaptive selection and domestication in Visayan warty pig and domestic pig with specific emphasize on the evolution of olfactory and gustatory genes, elucidating higher olfactory diversity in Visayan warty pig and positive and relaxed evolution of bitter and fat taste receptors, respectively, in domestic pig. Our comprehensive evolutionary and comparative genome analyses provide insight into the dynamics of genomes and how these change over relative short evolutionary times, as well as how these genomic differences encode for differences in the phenotypes.

Genomic consequences of a century of inbreeding and isolation in the Danish wild boar population

Demographic events such as series of bottlenecks impact the genetic variation and adaptive potential of populations. European megafauna, such as wild boars (Sus scrofa), have experienced severe climatic and size fluctuations that have shaped their genetic variation. Habitat fragmentation and human‐mediated translocations have further contributed to the complex demographic history of European wild boar. Danish wild boars represent an extreme case of a small and isolated population founded by four wild boars from Germany. Here, we explore the genetic composition of the Danish wild boar population in Klelund. We genotyped all 21 Danish wild boars that were recently transferred from the source population in Lille Vildmose into the Klelund Plantation to establish a novel wild boar population. We compared the Danish wild boars with high‐density single‐nucleotide polymorphism genotypes from a comprehensive reference set of 1263 wild and domesticated pigs, including 11 individuals from Ulm, one of two presumed founder locations in Germany. Our findings support the European wild background of the Danish population, and no traces of gene flow with wild or domesticated pigs were found. The narrow genetic origin of the Danish wild boars is illustrated by extremely long and frequent runs of homozygous stretches in their genomes, indicative of recent inbreeding. This study provides the first insights into one of the most inbred wild boar populations globally established a century ago from a narrow base of only four founders.

Whole‐genome analysis reveals the hybrid formation of Chinese indigenous DHB pigs following human migration

Hybridization is widespread in nature and is a valuable tool in domestic breeding. The DHB (DaHuaBai) pig in South China is the product of such a breeding strategy, resulting in increased body weight compared with other pigs in the surrounding area. We analyzed genomic data from 20 Chinese pig breeds and investigated the genomic architecture after breed formation of DHB. The breed showed inconsistency in genotype and body weight phenotype, in line with selection after hybridization. By quantifying introgression with a haplotype‐based approach, we proposed a two‐step introgression from large‐sized pigs into small‐sized pigs to produce DHB, consistent with the human migration events in Chinese history. Combining with gene prioritization and allele frequency analysis, we identify candidate genes that showed selection after introgression and that may affect body weight, such as IGF1R, SRC, and PCM1. Our research provides an example of a hybrid formation of domestic breeds along with human migration patterns.

A 12 kb multi-allelic copy number variation encompassing a GC gene enhancer is associated with mastitis resistance in dairy cattle

Clinical mastitis (CM) is an inflammatory disease occurring in the mammary glands of lactating cows. CM is under genetic control, and a prominent CM resistance QTL located on chromosome 6 was reported in various dairy cattle breeds. Nevertheless, the biological mechanism underpinning this QTL has been lacking. Herein, we mapped, fine-mapped, and discovered the putative causal variant underlying this CM resistance QTL in the Dutch dairy cattle population. We identified a ~12 kb multi-allelic copy number variant (CNV), that is in perfect linkage disequilibrium with a lead SNP, as a promising candidate variant. By implementing a fine-mapping and through expression QTL mapping, we showed that the group-specific component gene (GC), a gene encoding a vitamin D binding protein, is an excellent candidate causal gene for the QTL. The multiplicated alleles are associated with increased GC expression and low CM resistance. Ample evidence from functional genomics data supports the presence of an enhancer within this CNV, which would exert cis-regulatory effect on GC. We observed that strong positive selection swept the region near the CNV, and haplotypes associated with the multiplicated allele were strongly selected for. Moreover, the multiplicated allele showed pleiotropic effects for increased milk yield and reduced fertility, hinting that a shared underlying biology for these effects may revolve around the vitamin D pathway. These findings together suggest a putative causal variant of a CM resistance QTL, where a cis-regulatory element located within a CNV can alter gene expression and affect multiple economically important traits.

Large-scale genomic analysis reveals the genetic cost of chicken domestication

BACKGROUND

Species domestication is generally characterized by the exploitation of high-impact mutations through processes that involve complex shifting demographics of domesticated species. These include not only inbreeding and artificial selection that may lead to the emergence of evolutionary bottlenecks, but also post-divergence gene flow and introgression. Although domestication potentially affects the occurrence of both desired and undesired mutations, the way wild relatives of domesticated species evolve and how expensive the genetic cost underlying domestication is remain poorly understood. Here, we investigated the demographic history and genetic load of chicken domestication.

RESULTS

We analyzed a dataset comprising over 800 whole genomes from both indigenous chickens and wild jungle fowls. We show that despite having a higher genetic diversity than their wild counterparts (average π, 0.00326 vs. 0.00316), the red jungle fowls, the present-day domestic chickens experienced a dramatic population size decline during their early domestication. Our analyses suggest that the concomitant bottleneck induced 2.95% more deleterious mutations across chicken genomes compared with red jungle fowls, supporting the "cost of domestication" hypothesis. Particularly, we find that 62.4% of deleterious SNPs in domestic chickens are maintained in heterozygous states and masked as recessive alleles, challenging the power of modern breeding programs to effectively eliminate these genetic loads. Finally, we suggest that positive selection decreases the incidence but increases the frequency of deleterious SNPs in domestic chicken genomes.

CONCLUSION

This study reveals a new landscape of demographic history and genomic changes associated with chicken domestication and provides insight into the evolutionary genomic profiles of domesticated animals managed under modern human selection.

Pygmy hogs

Manon de Visser and colleagues introduce the rarest and smallest wild pig species, the pygmy hog (Porcula salvania).

Parallel Genetic Origin of Foot Feathering in Birds

Understanding the genetic basis of similar phenotypes shared between lineages is a long-lasting research interest. Even though animal evolution offers many examples of parallelism, for many phenotypes little is known about the underlying genes and mutations. We here use a combination of whole-genome sequencing, expression analyses, and comparative genomics to study the parallel genetic origin of ptilopody (Pti) in chicken. Ptilopody (or foot feathering) is a polygenic trait that can be observed in domesticated and wild avian species and is characterized by the partial or complete development of feathers on the ankle and feet. In domesticated birds, ptilopody is easily selected to fixation, though extensive variation in the type and level of feather development is often observed. By means of a genome-wide association analysis, we identified two genomic regions associated with ptilopody. At one of the loci, we identified a 17-kb deletion affecting PITX1 expression, a gene known to encode a transcription regulator of hindlimb identity and development. Similarly to pigeon, at the second loci, we observed ectopic expression of TBX5, a gene involved in forelimb identity and a key determinant of foot feather development. We also observed that the trait evolved only once as foot-feathered birds share the same haplotype upstream TBX5. Our findings indicate that in chicken and pigeon ptilopody is determined by the same set of genes that affect similar molecular pathways. Our study confirms that ptilopody has evolved through parallel evolution in chicken and pigeon.

Heterogeneity of a dwarf phenotype in Dutch traditional chicken breeds revealed by genomic analyses

The growth of animals is a complex trait, in chicken resulting in a diverse variety of forms, caused by a heterogeneous genetic basis. Bantam chicken, known as an exquisite form of dwarfism, has been used for crossbreeding to create corresponding dwarf counterparts for native fowls in the Dutch populations. Here, we demonstrate the heterogeneity of the bantam trait in Dutch chickens and reveal the underlying genetic causes, using whole-genome sequence data from matching pairs of bantam and normal-sized breeds. During the bantam-oriented crossbreeding, various bantam origins were used to introduce the bantam phenotype, and three major bantam sources were identified and clustered. The genome-wide association studies revealed multiple genetic variants and genes associated with bantam phenotype, including HMGA2 and PRDM16, genes involved in body growth and stature. The comparison of associated variants among studies illustrated differences related to divergent bantam origins, suggesting a clear heterogeneity among bantam breeds. We show that in neo-bantam breeds, the bantam-related regions underwent a strong haplotype introgression from the bantam source, outcompeting haplotypes from the normal-sized counterpart. The bantam heterogeneity is further confirmed by the presence of multiple haplotypes comprising associated alleles, which suggests the selection of the bantam phenotype is likely subject to a convergent direction across populations. Our study demonstrates that the diverse history of human-mediated crossbreeding has contributed to the complexity and heterogeneity of the bantam phenotype.

Genetic consequences of long-term small effective population size in the critically endangered pygmy hog

Increasing human disturbance and climate change have a major impact on habitat integrity and size, with far-reaching consequences for wild fauna and flora. Specifically, population decline and habitat fragmentation result in small, isolated populations. To what extend different endangered species can cope with small population size is still largely unknown. Studies on the genomic landscape of these species can shed light on past demographic dynamics and current genetic load, thereby also providing guidance for conservation programs. The pygmy hog (Porcula salvania) is the smallest and rarest wild pig in the world, with current estimation of only a few hundred living in the wild. Here, we analyzed whole-genome sequencing data of six pygmy hogs, three from the wild and three from a captive population, along with 30 pigs representing six other Suidae. First, we show that the pygmy hog had a very small population size with low genetic diversity over the course of the past ~1 million years. One indication of historical small effective population size is the absence of mitochondrial variation in the six sequenced individuals. Second, we evaluated the impact of historical demography. Runs of homozygosity (ROH) analysis suggests that the pygmy hog population has gone through past but not recent inbreeding. Also, the long-term, extremely small population size may have led to the accumulation of harmful mutations suggesting that the accumulation of deleterious mutations is exceeding purifying selection in this species. Thus, care has to be taken in the conservation program to avoid or minimize the potential for further inbreeding depression, and guard against environmental changes in the future.

Prioritizing sequence variants in conserved non-coding elements in the chicken genome using chCADD

The availability of genomes for many species has advanced our understanding of the non-protein-coding fraction of the genome. Comparative genomics has proven itself to be an invaluable approach for the systematic, genome-wide identification of conserved non-protein-coding elements (CNEs). However, for many non-mammalian model species, including chicken, our capability to interpret the functional importance of variants overlapping CNEs has been limited by current genomic annotations, which rely on a single information type (e.g. conservation). We here studied CNEs in chicken using a combination of population genomics and comparative genomics. To investigate the functional importance of variants found in CNEs we develop a ch(icken) Combined Annotation-Dependent Depletion (chCADD) model, a variant effect prediction tool first introduced for humans and later on for mouse and pig. We show that 73 Mb of the chicken genome has been conserved across more than 280 million years of vertebrate evolution. The vast majority of the conserved elements are in non-protein-coding regions, which display SNP densities and allele frequency distributions characteristic of genomic regions constrained by purifying selection. By annotating SNPs with the chCADD score we are able to pinpoint specific subregions of the CNEs to be of higher functional importance, as supported by SNPs found in these subregions are associated with known disease genes in humans, mice, and rats. Taken together, our findings indicate that CNEs harbor variants of functional significance that should be object of further investigation along with protein-coding mutations. We therefore anticipate chCADD to be of great use to the scientific community and breeding companies in future functional studies in chicken.

Digest: Climate change and agricultural intensification influence the strength and direction of natural selection in tree swallows

How does environmental heterogeneity affect natural selection on tree swallow nestlings? Houle et al. (2020) show that more precipitation and higher temperatures result in stronger selection on body mass and wing length and that agricultural intensity can affect the direction of selection. These findings raise the question of how genetic diversity changes under strong selection pressures, which will be especially important under ongoing agriculture intensification and climate change.

Mixed ancestry from wild and domestic lineages contributes to the rapid expansion of invasive feral swine

Invasive alien species are a significant threat to both economic and ecological systems. Identifying the processes that give rise to invasive populations is essential for implementing effective control strategies. We conducted an ancestry analysis of invasive feral swine (Sus scrofa, Linnaeus, 1758), a highly destructive ungulate that is widely distributed throughout the contiguous United States, to describe introduction pathways, sources of newly emergent populations and processes contributing to an ongoing invasion. Comparisons of high-density single nucleotide polymorphism genotypes for 6,566 invasive feral swine to a comprehensive reference set of S. scrofa revealed that the vast majority of feral swine were of mixed ancestry, with dominant genetic associations to Western heritage breeds of domestic pig and European populations of wild boar. Further, the rapid expansion of invasive feral swine over the past 30 years was attributable to secondary introductions from established populations of admixed ancestry as opposed to direct introductions of domestic breeds or wild boar. Spatially widespread genetic associations of invasive feral swine to European wild boar deviated strongly from historical S. scrofa introduction pressure, which was largely restricted to domestic pigs with infrequent, localized wild boar releases. The deviation between historical introduction pressure and contemporary genetic ancestry suggests wild boar-hybridization may contribute to differential fitness in the environment and heightened invasive potential for individuals of admixed domestic pig-wild boar ancestry.

pCADD: SNV prioritisation in Sus scrofa

BACKGROUND

In animal breeding, identification of causative genetic variants is of major importance and high economical value. Usually, the number of candidate variants exceeds the number of variants that can be validated. One way of prioritizing probable candidates is by evaluating their potential to have a deleterious effect, e.g. by predicting their consequence. Due to experimental difficulties to evaluate variants that do not cause an amino-acid substitution, other prioritization methods are needed. For human genomes, the prediction of deleterious genomic variants has taken a step forward with the introduction of the combined annotation dependent depletion (CADD) method. In theory, this approach can be applied to any species. Here, we present pCADD (p for pig), a model to score single nucleotide variants (SNVs) in pig genomes.

RESULTS

To evaluate whether pCADD captures sites with biological meaning, we used transcripts from miRNAs and introns, sequences from genes that are specific for a particular tissue, and the different sites of codons, to test how well pCADD scores differentiate between functional and non-functional elements. Furthermore, we conducted an assessment of examples of non-coding and coding SNVs, which are causal for changes in phenotypes. Our results show that pCADD scores discriminate between functional and non-functional sequences and prioritize functional SNVs, and that pCADD is able to score the different positions in a codon relative to their redundancy. Taken together, these results indicate that based on pCADD scores, regions with biological relevance can be identified and distinguished according to their rate of adaptation.

CONCLUSIONS

We present the ability of pCADD to prioritize SNVs in the pig genome with respect to their putative deleteriousness, in accordance to the biological significance of the region in which they are located. We created scores for all possible SNVs, coding and non-coding, for all autosomes and the X chromosome of the pig reference sequence Sscrofa11.1, proposing a toolbox to prioritize variants and evaluate sequences to highlight new sites of interest to explain biological functions that are relevant to animal breeding.

The type of bottleneck matters: Insights into the deleterious variation landscape of small managed populations

Predictions about the consequences of a small population size on genetic and deleterious variation are fundamental to population genetics. As small populations are more affected by genetic drift, purifying selection acting against deleterious alleles is predicted to be less efficient, therefore increasing the risk of inbreeding depression. However, the extent to which small populations are subjected to genetic drift depends on the nature and time frame in which the bottleneck occurs. Domesticated species are an excellent model to investigate the consequences of population bottlenecks on genetic and deleterious variation in small populations. This is because their history is dominated by known bottlenecks associated with domestication, breed formation and intense selective breeding. Here, we use whole-genome sequencing data from 97 chickens representing 39 traditional fancy breeds to directly examine the consequences of two types of bottlenecks for deleterious variation: the severe domestication bottleneck and the recent population decline accompanying breed formation. We find that recently bottlenecked populations have a higher proportion of deleterious variants relative to populations that have been kept at small population sizes since domestication. We also observe that long tracts of homozygous genotypes (runs of homozygosity) are proportionally more enriched in deleterious variants than the rest of the genome. This enrichment is particularly evident in recently bottlenecked populations, suggesting that homozygosity of these variants is likely to occur due to genetic drift and recent inbreeding. Our results indicate that the timing and nature of population bottlenecks can substantially shape the deleterious variation landscape in small populations.

Functional and population genetic features of copy number variations in two dairy cattle populations

BACKGROUND

Copy Number Variations (CNVs) are gain or loss of DNA segments that are known to play a role in shaping a wide range of phenotypes. In this study, we used two dairy cattle populations, Holstein Friesian and Jersey, to discover CNVs using the Illumina BovineHD Genotyping BeadChip aligned to the ARS-UCD1.2 assembly. The discovered CNVs were investigated for their functional impact and their population genetics features.

RESULTS

We discovered 14,272 autosomal CNVs, which were aggregated into 1755 CNV regions (CNVR) from 451 animals. These CNVRs together cover 2.8% of the bovine autosomes. The assessment of the functional impact of CNVRs showed that rare CNVRs (MAF < 0.01) are more likely to overlap with genes, than common CNVRs (MAF ≥ 0.05). The Population differentiation index (Fst) based on CNVRs revealed multiple highly diverged CNVRs between the two breeds. Some of these CNVRs overlapped with candidate genes such as MGAM and ADAMTS17 genes, which are related to starch digestion and body size, respectively. Lastly, linkage disequilibrium (LD) between CNVRs and BovineHD BeadChip SNPs was generally low, close to 0, although common deletions (MAF ≥ 0.05) showed slightly higher LD (r2 = ~ 0.1 at 10 kb distance) than the rest. Nevertheless, this LD is still lower than SNP-SNP LD (r2 = ~ 0.5 at 10 kb distance).

CONCLUSIONS

Our analyses showed that CNVRs detected using BovineHD BeadChip arrays are likely to be functional. This finding indicates that CNVs can potentially disrupt the function of genes and thus might alter phenotypes. Also, the population differentiation index revealed two candidate genes, MGAM and ADAMTS17, which hint at adaptive evolution between the two populations. Lastly, low CNVR-SNP LD implies that genetic variation from CNVs might not be fully captured in routine animal genetic evaluation, which relies solely on SNP markers.

The Genomic Complexity of a Large Inversion in Great Tits

Chromosome inversions have clear effects on genome evolution and have been associated with speciation, adaptation, and the evolution of the sex chromosomes. In birds, these inversions may play an important role in hybridization of species and disassortative mating. We identified a large (≈64 Mb) inversion polymorphism in the great tit (Parus major) that encompasses almost 1,000 genes and more than 90% of Chromosome 1A. The inversion occurs at a low frequency in a set of over 2,300 genotyped great tits in the Netherlands with only 5% of the birds being heterozygous for the inversion. In an additional analysis of 29 resequenced birds from across Europe, we found two heterozygotes. The likely inversion breakpoints show considerable genomic complexity, including multiple copy number variable segments. We identified different haplotypes for the inversion, which differ in the degree of recombination in the center of the chromosome. Overall, this remarkable genetic variant is widespread among distinct great tit populations and future studies of the inversion haplotype, including how it affects the fitness of carriers, may help to understand the mechanisms that maintain it.

Deciphering the patterns of genetic admixture and diversity in southern European cattle using genome-wide SNPs

The divergence between indicine cattle (Bos indicus) and taurine cattle (Bos taurus) is estimated to have occurred approximately 250,000 years ago, but a small number of European cattle breeds still display shared ancestry with indicine cattle. Additionally, following the divergence of African and European taurine, the gene flow between African taurine and southern European cattle has also been proposed. However, the extent to which non-European cattle ancestry is diffused across southern European cattle has not been investigated thoroughly. Also, in recent times, many local breeds have suffered severe reductions in effective population size. Therefore, in the present study, we investigated the pattern of genetic diversity in various European cattle based on single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) identified from whole-genome sequencing data. Additionally, we also employed unlinked and phased SNP-based approaches on high-density SNP array data to characterize non-European cattle ancestry in several southern European cattle breeds. Using heterozygosity-based parameters, we concluded that, on average, nucleotide diversity is greater in southern European cattle than western European (British and commercial) cattle. However, an abundance of long runs of homozygosity (ROH) and the pattern of Linkage disequilibrium decay suggested recent bottlenecks in Maltese and Romagnola. High nucleotide diversity outside ROH indicated a highly diverse founder population for southern European and African taurine. We also show that Iberian cattle display shared ancestry with African cattle. Furthermore, we show that Podolica is an ancient cross-bred between Indicine zebu and European taurine. Additionally, we also inferred similar ancestry profile of non-European cattle ancestry in different Balkan and Italian cattle breeds which might be an indication of the common origin of indicine ancestry in these breeds. Finally, we discuss several plausible demographic scenarios which might account for the presence of non-European cattle ancestry in these cattle breeds.

Genomic analysis on pygmy hog reveals extensive interbreeding during wild boar expansion

Wild boar (Sus scrofa) drastically colonized mainland Eurasia and North Africa, most likely from East Asia during the Plio-Pleistocene (2–1Mya). In recent studies, based on genome-wide information, it was hypothesized that wild boar did not replace the species it encountered, but instead exchanged genetic materials with them through admixture. The highly endangered pygmy hog (Porcula salvania) is the only suid species in mainland Eurasia known to have outlived this expansion, and therefore provides a unique opportunity to test this hybridization hypothesis. Analyses of pygmy hog genomes indicate that despite large phylogenetic divergence (~2 My), wild boar and pygmy hog did indeed interbreed as the former expanded across Eurasia. In addition, we also assess the taxonomic placement of the donor of another introgression, pertaining to a now-extinct species with a deep phylogenetic placement in the Suidae tree. Altogether, our analyses indicate that the rapid spread of wild boar was facilitated by inter-specific/inter-generic admixtures.

The pygmy hog (Porcula salvania), now highly endangered and restricted in a small region at the southern foothills of the Himalaya, is the only suid species in mainland Eurasia that outlived the expansion of wild boar (Sus scrofa). Here, the authors analyze genomes of pygmy hog and related suid species, and identify signals of introgression among these species.

Loss of function mutations in essential genes cause embryonic lethality in pigs

Lethal recessive alleles cause pre- or postnatal death in homozygous affected individuals, reducing fertility. Especially in small size domestic and wild populations, those alleles might be exposed by inbreeding, caused by matings between related parents that inherited the same recessive lethal allele from a common ancestor. In this study we report five relatively common (up to 13.4% carrier frequency) recessive lethal haplotypes in two commercial pig populations. The lethal haplotypes have a large effect on carrier-by-carrier matings, decreasing litter sizes by 15.1 to 21.6%. The causal mutations are of different type including two splice-site variants (affecting POLR1B and TADA2A genes), one frameshift (URB1), and one missense (PNKP) variant, resulting in a complete loss-of-function of these essential genes. The recessive lethal alleles affect up to 2.9% of the litters within a single population and are responsible for the death of 0.52% of the total population of embryos. Moreover, we provide compelling evidence that the identified embryonic lethal alleles contribute to the observed heterosis effect for fertility (i.e. larger litters in crossbred offspring). Together, this work marks specific recessive lethal variation describing its functional consequences at the molecular, phenotypic, and population level, providing a unique model to better understand fertility and heterosis in livestock.

Lethal recessives are mutations that cause early lethality in homozygous state that usually occur at very low frequency in wild and domestic populations. In livestock, however, those mutations might become more prevalent as a result of inbreeding. In this study, we report five such recessive lethal haplotypes that cause embryonic lethality in homozygous state in pigs. The causal mutations are of different type but all destroy the structure of essential genes involved in cellular housekeeping processes, essential for embryonic development. The lethal recessives have substantial impact on the population fitness affecting up to 3% of the population litters, causing the death of 0.52% of the total population of embryos. Moreover, these 'natural knockouts' can increase understanding of gene function within the mammalian clade. Together, our study will allow monitoring, and facilitate the purging and partial elimination of recessive lethal mutations in frequently used pig breeds.

Deleterious alleles in the context of domestication, inbreeding, and selection

Each individual has a certain number of harmful mutations in its genome. These mutations can lower the fitness of the individual carrying them, dependent on their dominance and selection coefficient. Effective population size, selection, and admixture are known to affect the occurrence of such mutations in a population. The relative roles of demography and selection are a key in understanding the process of adaptation. These are factors that are potentially influenced and confounded in domestic animals. Here, we hypothesize that the series of events of bottlenecks, introgression, and strong artificial selection associated with domestication increased mutational load in domestic species. Yet, mutational load is hard to quantify, so there are very few studies available revealing the relevance of evolutionary processes. The precise role of artificial selection, bottlenecks, and introgression in further increasing the load of deleterious variants in animals in breeding and conservation programmes remains unclear. In this paper, we review the effects of domestication and selection on mutational load in domestic species. Moreover, we test some hypotheses on higher mutational load due to domestication and selective sweeps using sequence data from commercial pig and chicken lines. Overall, we argue that domestication by itself is not a prerequisite for genetic erosion, indicating that fitness potential does not need to decline. Rather, mutational load in domestic species can be influenced by many factors, but consistent or strong trends are not yet clear. However, methods emerging from molecular genetics allow discrimination of hypotheses about the determinants of mutational load, such as effective population size, inbreeding, and selection, in domestic systems. These findings make us rethink the effect of our current breeding schemes on fitness of populations.

Balancing selection on a recessive lethal deletion with pleiotropic effects on two neighboring genes in the porcine genome

Livestock populations can be used to study recessive defects caused by deleterious alleles. The frequency of deleterious alleles including recessive lethal alleles can stay at high or moderate frequency within a population, especially if recessive lethal alleles exhibit an advantage for favourable traits in heterozygotes. In this study, we report such a recessive lethal deletion of 212kb (del) within the BBS9 gene in a breeding population of pigs. The deletion produces a truncated BBS9 protein expected to cause a complete loss-of-function, and we find a reduction of approximately 20% on the total number of piglets born from carrier by carrier matings. Homozygous del/del animals die mid- to late-gestation, as observed from high increase in numbers of mummified piglets resulting from carrier-by-carrier crosses. The moderate 10.8% carrier frequency (5.4% allele frequency) in this pig population suggests an advantage on a favourable trait in heterozygotes. Indeed, heterozygous carriers exhibit increased growth rate, an important selection trait in pig breeding. Increased growth and appetite together with a lower birth weight for carriers of the BBS9 null allele in pigs is analogous to the phenotype described in human and mouse for (naturally occurring) BBS9 null-mutants. We show that fetal death, however, is induced by reduced expression of the downstream BMPER gene, an essential gene for normal foetal development. In conclusion, this study describes a lethal 212kb deletion with pleiotropic effects on two different genes, one resulting in fetal death in homozygous state (BMPER), and the other increasing growth (BBS9) in heterozygous state. We provide strong evidence for balancing selection resulting in an unexpected high frequency of a lethal allele in the population. This study shows that the large amounts of genomic and phenotypic data routinely generated in modern commercial breeding programs deliver a powerful tool to monitor and control lethal alleles much more efficiently.

We report a large deletion within the BBS9 gene that induces late fetal mortality in homozygous affected animals in a commercial pig population. This late fetal mortality causes the fetus to become encapsulated and desiccated during the remaining time of the pregnancy, a process called mummification. The unusually high carrier frequency for this lethal deletion (10.8%) likely results from its strong positive association with growth rate in heterozygous individuals, an important selection trait in the pig breeding industry. Interestingly, we show that the positive effect on growth is induced by a heterozygous loss-of-function of the BBS9 gene, associated with obesity in human and mouse. However, late fetal mortality is induced by insufficient expression of the BMPER gene located directly downstream of the deletion which affects its regulatory elements required for gene expression. Together, our study shows an unique example of allelic pleiotropy in which one allele (deletion) is responsible for both increased growth and late fetal mortality by affecting two different genes.

Genome-Wide Characterization of Selection Signatures and Runs of Homozygosity in Ugandan Goat Breeds

Both natural and artificial selection are among the main driving forces shaping genetic variation across the genome of livestock species. Selection typically leaves signatures in the genome, which are often characterized by high genetic differentiation across breeds and/or a strong reduction in genetic diversity in regions associated with traits under intense selection pressure. In this study, we evaluated selection signatures and genomic inbreeding coefficients, FROH, based on runs of homozygosity (ROH), in six Ugandan goat breeds: Boer (n = 13), and the indigenous breeds Karamojong (n = 15), Kigezi (n = 29), Mubende (n = 29), Small East African (n = 29), and Sebei (n = 29). After genotyping quality control, 45,294 autosomal single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) remained for further analyses. A total of 394 and 6 breed-specific putative selection signatures were identified across all breeds, based on marker-specific fixation index (FST-values) and haplotype differentiation (hapFLK), respectively. These regions were enriched with genes involved in signaling pathways associated directly or indirectly with environmental adaptation, such as immune response (e.g., IL10RB and IL23A), growth and fatty acid composition (e.g., FGF9 and IGF1), and thermo-tolerance (e.g., MTOR and MAPK3). The study revealed little overlap between breeds in genomic regions under selection and generally did not display the typical classic selection signatures as expected due to the complex nature of the traits. In the Boer breed, candidate genes associated with production traits, such as body size and growth (e.g., GJB2 and GJA3) were also identified. Furthermore, analysis of ROH in indigenous goat breeds showed very low levels of genomic inbreeding (with the mean FROH per breed ranging from 0.8% to 2.4%), as compared to higher inbreeding in Boer (mean FROH = 13.8%). Short ROH were more frequent than long ROH, except in Karamojong, providing insight in the developmental history of these goat breeds. This study provides insights into the effects of long-term selection in Boer and indigenous Ugandan goat breeds, which are relevant for implementation of breeding programs and conservation of genetic resources, as well as their sustainable use and management.

CNVs are associated with genomic architecture in a songbird

Background

Understanding variation in genome structure is essential to understand phenotypic differences within populations and the evolutionary history of species. A promising form of this structural variation is copy number variation (CNV). CNVs can be generated by different recombination mechanisms, such as non-allelic homologous recombination, that rely on specific characteristics of the genome architecture. These structural variants can therefore be more abundant at particular genes ultimately leading to variation in phenotypes under selection. Detailed characterization of CNVs therefore can reveal evolutionary footprints of selection and provide insight in their contribution to phenotypic variation in wild populations.

Results

Here we use genotypic data from a long-term population of great tits (Parus major), a widely studied passerine bird in ecology and evolution, to detect CNVs and identify genomic features prevailing within these regions. We used allele intensities and frequencies from high-density SNP array data from 2,175 birds. We detected 41,029 CNVs concatenated into 8,008 distinct CNV regions (CNVRs). We successfully validated 93.75% of the CNVs tested by qPCR, which were sampled at different frequencies and sizes. A mother-daughter family structure allowed for the evaluation of the inheritance of a number of these CNVs. Thereby, only CNVs with 40 probes or more display segregation in accordance with Mendelian inheritance, suggesting a high rate of false negative calls for smaller CNVs. As CNVRs are a coarse-grained map of CNV loci, we also inferred the frequency of coincident CNV start and end breakpoints. We observed frequency-dependent enrichment of these breakpoints at homologous regions, CpG sites and AT-rich intervals. A gene ontology enrichment analyses showed that CNVs are enriched in genes underpinning neural, cardiac and ion transport pathways.

Conclusion

Great tit CNVs are present in almost half of the genes and prominent at repetitive-homologous and regulatory regions. Although overlapping genes under selection, the high number of false negatives make neutrality or association tests on CNVs detected here difficult. Therefore, CNVs should be further addressed in the light of their false negative rate and architecture to improve the comprehension of their association with phenotypes and evolutionary history.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s12864-018-4577-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Recent natural selection causes adaptive evolution of an avian polygenic trait

We used extensive data from a long-term study of great tits (Parus major) in the United Kingdom and Netherlands to better understand how genetic signatures of selection translate into variation in fitness and phenotypes. We found that genomic regions under differential selection contained candidate genes for bill morphology and used genetic architecture analyses to confirm that these genes, especially the collagen gene COL4A5, explained variation in bill length. COL4A5 variation was associated with reproductive success, which, combined with spatiotemporal patterns of bill length, suggested ongoing selection for longer bills in the United Kingdom. Last, bill length and COL4A5 variation were associated with usage of feeders, suggesting that longer bills may have evolved in the United Kingdom as a response to supplementary feeding.

A systematic survey to identify lethal recessive variation in highly managed pig populations

BACKGROUND

Lethal recessive variation can cause prenatal death of homozygous offspring. Although usually present at low-frequency in populations, the impact on individual fitness can be substantial. Until recently, the presence of recessive embryonic lethal variation could only be measured indirectly through reduced fertility. In this study, we estimate the presence of genetic loci associated with both early and late termination of development during gestation in pigs from the wealth of genome data routinely generated by a commercial breeding company.

RESULTS

We examined three commercial pig (Sus scrofa) populations for potentially deleterious genetic variation based on 80 K SNP-chip genotypes, and estimate the effects on reproductive traits. 24,000 pigs from three populations were analyzed for missing or depletion of homozygous haplotypes. We identified 145 haplotypes (ranging from 0.5-4 Mb in size) in the genome with complete absence or depletion of homozygous animals. Thirty-five haplotypes show a negative effect on at least one of the analysed reproductive traits (total number born, number of stillborn, and number of mummified piglets). One variant in particular appeared to result in relative late termination of development of fetuses, responsible for a significant fraction of observed stillborn piglets ('mummies'), as they die mid-gestation. Moreover, we identified the BMPER gene as a likely candidate underlying this phenomenon.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study shows that although lethal recessive variation is present, the frequency of these alleles is invariably low in these highly managed populations. Nevertheless, due to cumulative effects of deleterious variants, large numbers of affected offspring are produced. Furthermore, our study demonstrates the use of a large-scale commercial genetic experiment to systematically screen for 'natural knockouts' that can increase understanding of gene function.

Artificial selection on introduced Asian haplotypes shaped the genetic architecture in European commercial pigs

Early pig farmers in Europe imported Asian pigs to cross with their local breeds in order to improve traits of commercial interest. Current genomics techniques enabled genome-wide identification of these Asian introgressed haplotypes in modern European pig breeds. We propose that the Asian variants are still present because they affect phenotypes that were important for ancient traditional, as well as recent, commercial pig breeding. Genome-wide introgression levels were only weakly correlated with gene content and recombination frequency. However, regions with an excess or absence of Asian haplotypes (AS) contained genes that were previously identified as phenotypically important such as FASN, ME1, and KIT. Therefore, the Asian alleles are thought to have an effect on phenotypes that were historically under selection. We aimed to estimate the effect of AS in introgressed regions in Large White pigs on the traits of backfat (BF) and litter size. The majority of regions we tested that retained Asian deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) showed significantly increased BF from the Asian alleles. Our results suggest that the introgression in Large White pigs has been strongly determined by the selective pressure acting upon the introgressed AS. We therefore conclude that human-driven hybridization and selection contributed to the genomic architecture of these commercial pigs.

Evidence of long-term gene flow and selection during domestication from analyses of Eurasian wild and domestic pig genomes

Traditionally, the process of domestication is assumed to be initiated by humans, involve few individuals and rely on reproductive isolation between wild and domestic forms. We analyzed pig domestication using over 100 genome sequences and tested whether pig domestication followed a traditional linear model or a more complex, reticulate model. We found that the assumptions of traditional models, such as reproductive isolation and strong domestication bottlenecks, are incompatible with the genetic data. In addition, our results show that, despite gene flow, the genomes of domestic pigs have strong signatures of selection at loci that affect behavior and morphology. We argue that recurrent selection for domestic traits likely counteracted the homogenizing effect of gene flow from wild boars and created 'islands of domestication' in the genome. Our results have major ramifications for the understanding of animal domestication and suggest that future studies should employ models that do not assume reproductive isolation.

Runs of homozygosity and distribution of functional variants in the cattle genome

Background

Recent developments in sequencing technology have facilitated widespread investigations of genomic variants, including continuous stretches of homozygous genomic regions. For cattle, a large proportion of these runs of homozygosity (ROH) are likely the result of inbreeding due to the accumulation of elite alleles from long-term selective breeding programs. In the present study, ROH were characterized in four cattle breeds with whole genome sequence data and the distribution of predicted functional variants was detected in ROH regions and across different ROH length classes.

Results

On average, 19.5 % of the genome was located in ROH across four cattle breeds. There were an average of 715.5 ROH per genome with an average size of ~750 kbp, ranging from 10 (minimum size considered) to 49,290 kbp. There was a significant correlation between shared short ROH regions and regions putatively under selection (p < 0.001). By investigating the relationship between ROH and the predicted deleterious and non-deleterious variants, we gained insight into the distribution of functional variation in inbred (ROH) regions. Predicted deleterious variants were more enriched in ROH regions than predicted non-deleterious variants, which is consistent with observations in the human genome. We also found that increased enrichment of deleterious variants was significantly higher in short (<100 kbp) and medium (0.1 to 3 Mbp) ROH regions compared with long (>3 Mbp) ROH regions (P < 0.001), which is different than what has been observed in the human genome.

Conclusions

This study illustrates the distribution of ROH and functional variants within ROH in cattle populations. These patterns are different from those in the human genome but consistent with the natural history of cattle populations, which is confirmed by the significant correlation between shared short ROH regions and regions putatively under selection. These findings contribute to understanding the effects of inbreeding and probably selection in shaping the distribution of functional variants in the cattle genome.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12864-015-1715-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Using genome-wide measures of coancestry to maintain diversity and fitness in endangered and domestic pig populations

Conservation and breeding programs aim at maintaining the most diversity, thereby avoiding deleterious effects of inbreeding while maintaining enough variation from which traits of interest can be selected. Theoretically, the most diversity is maintained using optimal contributions based on many markers to calculate coancestries, but this can decrease fitness by maintaining linked deleterious variants. The heterogeneous patterns of coancestry displayed in pigs make them an excellent model to test these predictions. We propose methods to measure coancestry and fitness from resequencing data and use them in population management. We analyzed the resequencing data of Sus cebifrons, a highly endangered porcine species from the Philippines, and genotype data from the Pietrain domestic breed. By analyzing the demographic history of Sus cebifrons, we inferred two past bottlenecks that resulted in some inbreeding load. In Pietrain, we analyzed signatures of selection possibly associated with commercial traits. We also simulated the management of each population to assess the performance of different optimal contribution methods to maintain diversity, fitness, and selection signatures. Maximum genetic diversity was maintained using marker-by-marker coancestry, and least using genealogical coancestry. Using a measure of coancestry based on shared segments of the genome achieved the best results in terms of diversity and fitness. However, this segment-based management eliminated signatures of selection. We demonstrate that maintaining both diversity and fitness depends on the genomic distribution of deleterious variants, which is shaped by demographic and selection histories. Our findings show the importance of genomic and next-generation sequencing information in the optimal design of breeding or conservation programs.

Copy number variation in the speciation of pigs: a possible prominent role for olfactory receptors

Background

Unraveling the genetic mechanisms associated with reduced gene flow between genetically differentiated populations is key to understand speciation. Different types of structural variations (SVs) have been found as a source of genetic diversity in a wide range of species. Previous studies provided detailed knowledge on the potential evolutionary role of SVs, especially copy number variations (CNVs), between well diverged species of e.g. primates. However, our understanding of their significance during ongoing speciation processes is limited due to the lack of CNV data from closely related species. The genus Sus (pig and its close relatives) which started to diverge ~4 Mya presents an excellent model for studying the role of CNVs during ongoing speciation.

Results

In this study, we identified 1408 CNV regions (CNVRs) across the genus Sus. These CNVRs encompass 624 genes and were found to evolve ~2.5 times faster than single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). The majority of these copy number variable genes are olfactory receptors (ORs) known to play a prominent role in food foraging and mate recognition in Sus. Phylogenetic analyses, including novel Bayesian analysis, based on CNVRs that overlap ORs retain the well-accepted topology of the genus Sus whereas CNVRs overlapping genes other than ORs show evidence for random drift and/or admixture.

Conclusion

We hypothesize that inter-specific variation in copy number of ORs provided the means for rapid adaptation to different environments during the diversification of the genus Sus in the Pliocene. Furthermore, these regions might have acted as barriers preventing massive gene flow between these species during the multiple hybridization events that took place later in the Pleistocene suggesting a possible prominent role of ORs in the ongoing Sus speciation.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12864-015-1449-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Genome sequencing reveals fine scale diversification and reticulation history during speciation in Sus

Background

Elucidating the process of speciation requires an in-depth understanding of the evolutionary history of the species in question. Studies that rely upon a limited number of genetic loci do not always reveal actual evolutionary history, and often confuse inferences related to phylogeny and speciation. Whole-genome data, however, can overcome this issue by providing a nearly unbiased window into the patterns and processes of speciation. In order to reveal the complexity of the speciation process, we sequenced and analyzed the genomes of 10 wild pigs, representing morphologically or geographically well-defined species and subspecies of the genus Sus from insular and mainland Southeast Asia, and one African common warthog.

Results

Our data highlight the importance of past cyclical climatic fluctuations in facilitating the dispersal and isolation of populations, thus leading to the diversification of suids in one of the most species-rich regions of the world. Moreover, admixture analyses revealed extensive, intra- and inter-specific gene-flow that explains previous conflicting results obtained from a limited number of loci. We show that these multiple episodes of gene-flow resulted from both natural and human-mediated dispersal.

Conclusions

Our results demonstrate the importance of past climatic fluctuations and human mediated translocations in driving and complicating the process of speciation in island Southeast Asia. This case study demonstrates that genomics is a powerful tool to decipher the evolutionary history of a genus, and reveals the complexity of the process of speciation.

Hybrid origin of European commercial pigs examined by an in-depth haplotype analysis on chromosome 1

Although all farm animals have an original source of domestication, a large variety of modern breeds exist that are phenotypically highly distinct from the ancestral wild population. This phenomenon can be the result of artificial selection or gene flow from other sources into the domesticated population. The Eurasian wild boar (Sus scrofa) has been domesticated at least twice in two geographically distinct regions during the Neolithic revolution when hunting shifted to farming. Prior to the establishment of the commercial European pig breeds we know today, some 200 years ago Chinese pigs were imported into Europe to improve local European pigs. Commercial European domesticated pigs are genetically more diverse than European wild boars, although historically the latter represents the source population for domestication. In this study we examine the cause of the higher diversity within the genomes of European commercial pigs compared to their wild ancestors by testing two different hypotheses. In the first hypothesis we consider that European commercial pigs are a mix of different European wild populations as a result of movement throughout Europe, hereby acquiring haplotypes from all over the European continent. As an alternative hypothesis, we examine whether the introgression of Asian haplotypes into European breeds during the Industrial Revolution caused the observed increase in diversity. By using re-sequence data for chromosome 1 of 136 pigs and wild boars, we show that an Asian introgression of about 20% into the genome of European commercial pigs explains the majority of the increase in genetic diversity. These findings confirm that the Asian hybridization, that was used to improve production traits of local breeds, left its signature in the genome of the commercial pigs we know today.

Whole-genome sequence analysis reveals differences in population management and selection of European low-input pig breeds

BACKGROUND

A major concern in conservation genetics is to maintain the genetic diversity of populations. Genetic variation in livestock species is threatened by the progressive marginalisation of local breeds in benefit of high-output pigs worldwide. We used high-density SNP and re-sequencing data to assess genetic diversity of local pig breeds from Europe. In addition, we re-sequenced pigs from commercial breeds to identify potential candidate mutations responsible for phenotypic divergence among these groups of breeds.

RESULTS

Our results point out some local breeds with low genetic diversity, whose genome shows a high proportion of regions of homozygosis (>50%) and that harbour a large number of potentially damaging mutations. We also observed a high correlation between genetic diversity estimates using high-density SNP data and Next Generation Sequencing data (r = 0.96 at individual level). The study of non-synonymous SNPs that were fixed in commercial breeds and also in any local breed, but with different allele, revealed 99 non-synonymous SNPs affecting 65 genes. Candidate mutations that may underlie differences in the adaptation to the environment were exemplified by the genes AZGP1 and TAS2R40. We also observed that highly productive breeds may have lost advantageous genotypes within genes involve in immune response--e.g. IL12RB2 and STAB1-, probably as a result of strong artificial in the intensive production systems in pig.

CONCLUSIONS

The high correlation between genetic diversity computed with the 60K SNP and whole genome re-sequence data indicates that the Porcine 60K SNP Beadchip provides reliable estimates of genomic diversity in European pig populations despite the expected bias. Moreover, this analysis gave insights for strategies to the genetic characterization of local breeds. The comparison between re-sequenced local pigs and re-sequenced commercial pigs made it possible to report candidate mutations to be responsible for phenotypic divergence among those groups of breeds. This study highlights the importance of low input breeds as a valuable genetic reservoir for the pig production industry. However, the high levels of ROHs, inbreeding and potentially damaging mutations emphasize the importance of the genetic characterization of local breeds to preserve their genomic variability.

Genomic analysis reveals selection for Asian genes in European pigs following human-mediated introgression

The independent domestication of local wild boar populations in Asia and Europe about 10,000 years ago led to distinct European and Asian pig breeds, each with very different phenotypic characteristics. During the Industrial Revolution, Chinese breeds were imported to Europe to improve commercial traits in European breeds. Here we demonstrate the presence of introgressed Asian haplotypes in European domestic pigs and selection signatures on some loci in these regions, using whole genome sequence data. The introgression signatures are widespread and the Asian haplotypes are rarely fixed. The Asian introgressed haplotypes are associated with regions harbouring genes involved in meat quality, development and fertility. We identify Asian-derived non-synonymous mutations in the AHR gene that associate with increased litter size in multiple European commercial lines. These findings demonstrate that increased fertility was an important breeding goal for early nineteenth century pig farmers, and that Asian variants of genes related to this trait were preferentially selected during the development of modern European pig breeds.

Untangling the hybrid nature of modern pig genomes: a mosaic derived from biogeographically distinct and highly divergent Sus scrofa populations

The merging of populations after an extended period of isolation and divergence is a common phenomenon, in natural settings as well as due to human interference. Individuals with such hybrid origins contain genomes that essentially form a mosaic of different histories and demographies. Pigs are an excellent model species to study hybridization because European and Asian wild boars diverged ~1.2 Mya, and pigs were domesticated independently in Europe and Asia. During the Industrial Revolution in England, pigs were imported from China to improve the local pigs. This study utilizes the latest genomics tools to identify the origin of haplotypes in European domesticated pigs that are descendant from Asian and European populations. Our results reveal fine-scale haplotype structure representing different ancient demographic events, as well as a mosaic composition of those distinct histories due to recently introgressed haplotypes in the pig genome. As a consequence, nucleotide diversity in the genome of European domesticated pigs is higher when at least one haplotype of Asian origin is present, and haplotype length correlates negatively with recombination frequency and nucleotide diversity. Another consequence is that the inference of past effective population size is influenced by the background of the haplotypes in an individual, but we demonstrate that by careful sorting based on the origin of haplotypes, both distinct demographic histories can be reconstructed. Future detailed mapping of the genomic distribution of variation will enable a targeted approach to increase genetic diversity of captive and wild populations, thus facilitating conservation efforts in the near future.

Conservation genomic analysis of domestic and wild pig populations from the Iberian Peninsula

BACKGROUND

Inbreeding is among the major concerns in management of local livestock populations. The effective population size of these populations tends to be small, which enhances the risk of fitness reduction and extinction. High-density SNP data make it possible to undertake novel approaches in conservation genetics of endangered breeds and wild populations.A total of 97 representative samples of domestic and wild pig populations from the Iberian Peninsula, subjected to different levels of threat with extinction, were genotyped with a 60 K SNP panel. Data analyses based on: (i) allele frequency differences; (ii) linkage disequilibrium and (iii) runs of homozygosity were integrated to study population relationships, inbreeding and demographic history.

RESULTS

The domestic pigs analyzed belonged to local Spanish and Portuguese breeds: Iberian ─ including the variants Retinto Iberian, Negro Iberian and Manchado de Jabugo ─, Bisaro and Chato Murciano. The population structure and persistence of phase analysis suggested high genetic relations between Iberian variants, with recent crossbreeding of Manchado de Jabugo with other pig populations. Chato Murciano showed a high frequency of long runs of homozygosity indicating recent inbreeding and reflecting the recent bottleneck reported by historical records. The Chato Murciano and the Manchado de Jabugo breeds presented the lowest effective population sizes in accordance with their status of highly inbred breeds. The Iberian wild boar presented a high frequency of short runs of homozygosity indicating past small population size but no signs of recent inbreeding. The Iberian breed showed higher genetic similarities with Iberian wild boar than the other domestic breeds.

CONCLUSIONS

High-density SNP data provided a consistent overview of population structure, demographic history and inbreeding of minority breeds and wild pig populations from the Iberian Peninsula. Despite the very different background of the populations used, we found a good agreement between the different analyses. Our results are also in agreement with historical reports and provide insight in the events that shaped the current genetic variation of pig populations from the Iberian Peninsula. The results exposed will aid to design and implement strategies for the future management of endangered minority pig breeds and wild populations.

Evolutionary dynamics of copy number variation in pig genomes in the context of adaptation and domestication

Background

Copy number variable regions (CNVRs) can result in drastic phenotypic differences and may therefore be subject to selection during domestication. Studying copy number variation in relation to domestication is highly relevant in pigs because of their very rich natural and domestication history that resulted in many different phenotypes. To investigate the evolutionary dynamic of CNVRs, we applied read depth method on next generation sequence data from 16 individuals, comprising wild boars and domestic pigs from Europe and Asia.

Results

We identified 3,118 CNVRs with an average size of 13 kilobases comprising a total of 39.2 megabases of the pig genome and 545 overlapping genes. Functional analyses revealed that CNVRs are enriched with genes related to sensory perception, neurological process and response to stimulus, suggesting their contribution to adaptation in the wild and behavioral changes during domestication. Variations of copy number (CN) of antimicrobial related genes suggest an ongoing process of evolution of these genes to combat food-borne pathogens. Likewise, some genes related to the omnivorous lifestyle of pigs, like genes involved in detoxification, were observed to be CN variable. A small portion of CNVRs was unique to domestic pigs and may have been selected during domestication. The majority of CNVRs, however, is shared between wild and domesticated individuals, indicating that domestication had minor effect on the overall diversity of CNVRs. Also, the excess of CNVRs in non-genic regions implies that a major part of these variations is likely to be (nearly) neutral. Comparison between different populations showed that larger populations have more CNVRs, highlighting that CNVRs are, like other genetic variation such as SNPs and microsatellites, reflecting demographic history rather than phenotypic diversity.

Conclusion

CNVRs in pigs are enriched for genes related to sensory perception, neurological process, and response to stimulus. The majority of CNVRs ascertained in domestic pigs are also variable in wild boars, suggesting that the domestication of the pig did not result in a change in CNVRs in domesticated pigs. The majority of variable regions were found to reflect demographic patterns rather than phenotypic.