Matrilineal Composition of the Reconstructed Stock of the Szekler Horse Breed

Abstract

The Szekler horse was a small-sized mountain horse of the Carpathian Mountains whose official stud book ceased to exist after WWII. Despite that, individual horses preserving all the characteristics of the Szekler horse remained scattered in remote areas. This study aims to evaluate the mitochondrial D-loop sequence (608 bp) of the founder population (n = 59) in 2021 of a breed reconstruction project started in 2012. D-loop showed 68 polymorphic sites. The number of haplotypes was 34, with haplotype diversity (Hd) 0.966 and nucleotide diversity (π) 0.02232. The value of Fu’s Fs statistic (−6.566) was significant (p < 0.001), which rejects a stable population status. Thirteen haplogroups (HG) were found with a nearly equal number of representatives (HG(n)—A (5), D (1), E (2), G (4), I (4), J-K (1), M (4), N (2), O’P (4), and R (1)). In contrast, the Q, L, and B HGs occurred in more horses (15, 9, and 7, respectively). Based on a large number of polymorphic sites and haplotypes, the founder stock is considered diverse. Since the HG Q is characteristic of Asian horses, the examined stock haplotype distribution reflects the eastern origin of the Hungarian horses brought from the East in 896 AD. It is complemented by the gene pool of horses from Europe (e.g., L) and the Middle East (e.g., B).

Y-Chromosome Haplotype Report among Eight Italian Horse Breeds

“…Even if the whole genomic approaches are now opening up new clues on livestock complexity and admixture, the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and the male-specific region of the Y chromosome (MSY) continue to be extremely important sources of information because of their unique pattern of inheritance, as demonstrated in different species such as sheep and goat [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ], cattle [ 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ], and horse [ 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 ].…”

Mitochondrial DNA sequencing of Kehilan and Hamdani horses from Saudi Arabia

“…One of the studies reported that the Iberian Peninsula was also possibly the site of horse domestication ( Lopes et al, 2005 ). One of the recent studies reported that there are 18 haplogroups based on horse mtDNA (A-R) and majority of them were domesticated in Asia ( Gáspárdy et al, 2023 ). They were not well differentiated geographically due to the mixing and modern breeding methods.…”

“…They have been used as carriers during prehistorical times and have undergone considerable breed mixing leading to a significant alteration in their genetic structure. However, mtDNA plays a key role in determining the origin of breeds ( Gáspárdy et al, 2023 ).…”