Bioscientifica Proceedings

This paper reviews the major approaches used to map quantitative trait loci (QTL) and current knowledge about QTL affecting reproductive trait loci in pigs. Three different approaches, i.e. functional candidate gene analyses, genome-wide linkage studies (GWLS) and genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have been used to map QTL in pigs. The interest and limits of each of the three approaches are discussed. Candidate genes and QTL have been reviewed based on PigQTLdb at http://www.animalgenome. org. A total of 29 candidate genes affecting reproductive traits located on 14 autosomes have been considered. Some of them are well established results, but most results originate from single studies of limited scale and need to be confirmed. Several thousands of QTL affecting 15 male and 15 female reproductive traits have been identified on 17 and 19 different chromosomes, respectively, using GWLS. Yet, the majority of them are only putative QTL and few QTL regions overlap between studies. Epistatic interactions between QTL appear as rather important in the single study investigating the effects of epistasis on pig reproductive traits. A large number of QTL distributed over almost all pig chromosomes have been identified in the single GWAS study published so far for pig reproductive traits. Use of sequence data, of more complex genetic models and of integrative biology approaches should be considered for more thoroughly investigating the genetic architecture of pig reproductive traits in the future.

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