Author(s): Gaspar, Daniel ; Ginja, Catarina ; Carolino, Nuno ; Leão, Célia ; Monteiro, Helena ; Tábuas, Lino ; Branco, Sandra ; Padre, Ludovina ; Caetano, Pedro ; Romão, Ricardo ; Matos, Claudino ; Marcos Ramos, António ; Bettencourt, Elisa ; Usué, Ana
Date: 2024
Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10174/36590
Origin: Repositório Científico da Universidade de Évora
Subject(s): Dichelobacter nodosus; footrot; sheep; Merino; Alentejo
Ovine footrot caused by Dichelobacter nodosus (D. nodosus) is a contagious disease with serious economic and welfare impacts in sheep production systems worldwide. A better understanding of the host genetic architecture regarding footrot resistance/susceptibility is crucial to develop disease control strategies that efficiently reduce infection and its severity. A genome-wide association study was performed using a customized SNP array (47,779 SNPs in total) to identify genetic variants associated to footrot resistance/susceptibility in two Portuguese native breeds, i.e. Merino Branco and Merino Preto, and a population of crossbred animals. A cohort of 1375 sheep sampled across 17 flocks, located in the Alentejo region (southern Portugal), was included in the analyses.
