Background The Kedah Kelantan (KK) is the indigenous cattle breed of Malaysia and is mainly kept by small farmers for meat production because of its small and compact body, and low maintenance requirement. This breed faces risk of germplasm dilution due to extensive crossbreeding and breeds replacement practices in the country. The population size of purebred KK is fast decreasing and most of the commercial populations are actually crossbreds. There is a lack of information on the genetic characteristics of KK. The genetic relationships between the KK, the synthetic breeds developed using the KK as the maternal line, as well as the non-descriptive KK crossbred types are also unknown. It is with these in mind that the present study was conducted. The objective of the study was to evaluate the genetic variability within and among the indigenous KK cattle and its crossbred types in Malaysia using 30 microsatellites loci. Results All the 30 microsatellites loci used were polymorphic in all populations. Heterozygosity values observed were moderate and lower than the expected values. The inbreeding was present in all populations and could lead to loss of genetic diversity if not addressed. In general, the genetic differentiation measures were moderate, with a mean FST of 0.054. The structure analysis grouped the populations into three clusters. Analysis of zebu and taurine diagnostic alleles showed that all population had high proportion of Indian zebu alleles and very low proportions of African taurine and European taurine diagnostic alleles. Conclusions It may be concluded that there is still some genetic variation present in the KK. However, this genetic diversity is at risk of being lost if no appropriate breeding practices are implemented.
The Brahman was one of the exotic breeds imported into Malaysia to help boost the local beef cattle industry. Due to its adaptability and the productive performance, it is considered as a suitable breed for the country, as well as a breed for use in crossbreeding. This study aimed to assess the genetic variability in the Brahman breed in Malaysia using microsatellite markers. Twenty microsatellite loci,BM1818, BM1824, BM2113, CSRM60, CSSM66, ETH3, ETH10, ETH152, ETH185, ETH225, HAUT24, HAUT27, HEL1, HEL5, HEL9, HEL13, ILSTS005, ILSTS006, INRA005 and INRA023, were used to screen a random sample of 32 of Brahman cattle at the Brahman nucleus herd at DVS Livestock Center in Kuala Berang, Terengganu. A total of 151 alleles were detected. The number of alleles per locus varied between 6 and 10 with an average of 7.6. The effective number of alleles (Ne) range between 2 and 7 with average of 3.8. The observed heterozygosity values (0.26 - 0.83) were lower than the expected heterozygosity values for almost all loci. The overall mean heterozygosity was 0.54. The values of inbreeding coefficient (FIS) based on the individual locus were generally positive. Thirteen loci deviated from HWE equilibrium (p<0.05). This study showed that there was low genetic variability in the Brahman nucleus herd in Malaysia
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