Department of Agriculture, International Hellenic University, Thessaloniki, Sindos, Greece.
Research Institute of Animal Science, ELGO Demeter, Giannitsa, Greece.
Anim Biotechnol. 2023 Nov;34(4):1701-1709. doi: 10.1080/10495398.2022.2042307. Epub 2022 Mar 9.
The Hungarian Merino sheep breed () is the most significant animal resource of the Hungarian sheep sector which, unfortunately, has gone through a huge reduction in number during the last decades and became endangered in 2014. A modern molecular genetic survey is now becoming more than necessary in order to characterize the within-breed genetic diversity and structure. For that reason, six Hungarian Merino flocks were genotyped in 16 microsatellite markers. In total, 144 different alleles were found and the mean values of observed and expected heterozygosity were 0.714 and 0.705, respectively, suggesting a noticeable genetic variability of the breed. The genetic differentiation of the Hungarian flocks was generally low, as reflected by the estimated total value (0.036), the extended pattern of admixture in Structure analysis, as well as, by the noticeable level of genetic clustering in UPGMA and FCA analyses. However, two out of the six studied flocks tended to be genetically more distant. The outcome of our study could be a starting point for a planned breeding strategy of the Hungarian Merino breed, by keeping the within-flock genetic variability in priority, as well as, by preserving the potential genetic uniqueness with close monitoring of the inbreeding.
匈牙利美利奴羊品种（）是匈牙利绵羊业最重要的动物资源，但不幸的是，在过去几十年中，其数量大幅减少，在 2014 年已濒临灭绝。为了更好地描述品种内的遗传多样性和结构，现在非常有必要进行现代分子遗传学调查。为此，对六个匈牙利美利奴羊群进行了 16 个微卫星标记的基因分型。共发现 144 个不同的等位基因，观察和预期杂合度的平均值分别为 0.714 和 0.705，表明该品种具有明显的遗传变异性。匈牙利羊群的遗传分化通常较低，这反映在估计的总 值（0.036）、结构分析中扩展的混合模式以及 UPGMA 和 FCA 分析中明显的遗传聚类水平上。然而，在研究的六个羊群中，有两个羊群的遗传距离倾向于更大。我们的研究结果可以为匈牙利美利奴羊的计划繁殖策略提供一个起点，优先保持群体内的遗传变异性，同时通过密切监测近亲繁殖来保护潜在的遗传独特性。
