Design of a new SNP chip

Offentlig prosjektsammendrag

Genotyping is a core of every modern breeding programme and Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) chips are used in the Norwegian Red cattle to read and individual genome. Genotype information is used for setting up genomic relationship matrix which is a part of the mixed model equation for the prediction of breeding values. Genotype information is also used for parentage verification. Here, every genotyped pair of parent and progeny is checked and when a mismatch is identified a potential parent is looked for in the genotyped animals. Identification of allele carrying status for mendelian traits is another area where genotype information is used. Mendelian traits are under the effect of one or only a few sites in the genome and their allelic status can be identified with genotyping. The SNP chip currently used for genotyping in Norwegian Red was primarily designed for Holstein cattle breed. Design of a new SNP chip is necessary in order to increase the accuracy of predicted breeding values and include more SNPs for identification of the allelic state for mendelian traits.