Monday, February 3, 2014

When and how did Bos indicus introgress into Mongolian cattle?

Gene. 2014 Jan 11. pii: S0378-1119(14)00008-0. doi: 10.1016/j.gene.2013.12.066. [Epub ahead of print]

When and how did Bos indicus introgress into Mongolian cattle?

Author information

  • 1College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China.
  • 2Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures, Stanford University, CA 94305, USA.
  • 3Weinan Vocational and Technical College, Weinan, Shaanxi, 714000, China.
  • 4College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China. Electronic address: leichuzhao1118@126.com.

Abstract

The Mongolian cattle are one of the most widespread breeds with strictly Bos taurus morphological features in northern China. In our current study, we presented a diversity of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) D-loop region and Y chromosome SNP markers in 25 male and 8 female samples of Mongolian cattle from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region in Western China, and detected 21 B. taurus and four Bos indicus (zebu) mtDNA haplotypes. Among four B. indicus mtDNA haplotypes, two haplotypes belonged to I1 haplogroup and the remaining two haplotypes belonged to I2 haplogroup. In contrast, all 25 male Mongolian cattle samples revealed B. taurus Y chromosome haplotype and no B. indicus haplotypes were found. Historical and archeological records indicate that B. taurus was introduced to Xinjiang during the second millennium BC and B. indicus appeared in this region by the second century AD. The two types of cattle coexisted for many centuries in Xinjiang, as depicted in clay and wooden figurines unearthed in the Astana cemetery in Turfan (3rd-8th century AD). Multiple lines of evidence suggest that the earliest B. indicus introgression in the Mongolian cattle may have occurred during the 2nd-7th centuries AD through the Silk Road around the Xinjiang region. This conclusion differs from the previous hypothesis that zebu introgression to Mongolian cattle happened during the Mongol Empire era in the 13th century.

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