Identification of genes associated with color characteristics of meat and fat tissue of aberdeen-angus cattle

Currently, full genome association studies and identification of candidate genes for economically useful traits in farm animals are topical, scientifically sound and practice-oriented, and fulfill one of the objectives of the Strategy for Scientific and Technical Development of the Russian Federation. This article presents the results of GWAS on color spectral values of meat and fat tissue of Aberdeen-Angus cattle, known for its meat characteristics of high grade. The animals were genotyped on high-density BovineHD Genotyping BeadChip chips containing ≈53,000 SNPs. After quality control, 39,928 remained. By analysis and structural annotation, 25 and 26 candidate genes for meat and fat color were identified, respectively. According to functional annotation, the genes were categorized into 6 groups: nervous system functions, organ development, vascular, joints, metabolic processes and biosynthesis, cellular processes, muscle, tissue and bone, reproduction and embryonic development. The obtained genes were checked through the Animal QTL database, as a result of which 13 genes were confirmed, of which 3 were localized SNPs, in connection with which the LRP2, SCIN and ANTXR1 genes have advantages for their further application in the molecular diagnostics of cattle not only meat, but also dairy productivity.