Heterogeneity of a dwarf phenotype in Dutch traditional chicken breeds revealed by genomic analyses

Growth of animals is a complex trait, in chicken resulting in a diverse variety of forms, caused by a heterogenous genetic basis. Bantam chicken, known as an exquisite form of dwarfism, have been used for crossbreeding to create corresponding dwarf counterparts for native fowls in the Dutch population. Here we demonstrate the heterogeneity of the bantam trait in Dutch chickens and reveal the underlying genetic causes, using whole-genome sequence data from matching pairs of bantam and normal-sized breeds. During the bantam oriented crossbreeding, various bantam origins were used to introduce th... Mehr ...