Biology subjects

Okeno, T. O.

Publications and source records attributed to Okeno, T. O..

2 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2020

Genetic diversity and population structure among goat genotypes in Kenya

Population structure and relationship information among goats is critical for genetic improvement, utilization and conservation. This study explored population structure and level of gene intermixing among four goat genotypes in Kenya: Alpine (n = 30), Toggenburg (n = 28), Saanen (n = 24) and Galla (n = 12). The population structuring and relatedness were estimated using principal component analysis utilizing allele frequencies of the SNP markers. Genotype relationships were evaluated based on the calculated Reynolds genetic distances. A phylogenetic tree was constructed to represent genotype clustering using iTOL software. Population structure was investigated using model-based clustering (ADMIXTURE) Genotypes relationships revealed four distinctive clusters: Alpine, Galla, Saanen and Toggenburg. The ADMIXTURE results revealed some level of gene intermixing among Alpine, Toggenburg and Saanen with Galla. Saanen goats were the most admixed genotype with 84%, 7% and 4% of its genome derived from Galla, Alpine and Toggenburg respectively. Alpine and Toggenburg goats shared some associations with the Galla goat; 10% and 1% respectively. The association of Galla with other genotypes was anticipated since Galla goat was used as the founder population for crossbreeding with Saanen, Alpine and Toggenburg breed. The genetic variations among the goat genotypes observed, will provide a good opportunity for sustainable utilization, conservation and future genetic resource improvement programs in goat genotypes in Kenya.View Full Text

genomics↗

bioRxiv2019

Genetic diversity and population structure of indigenous chicken in Rwanda using microsatellite markers

Rwanda has about 4.5 million of indigenous chicken (IC) that are very low in productivity. To initiate any genetic improvement programme, IC needs to be accurately characterized. The key purpose of this study was to ascertain the genetic diversity of IC in Rwanda using microsatellite markers. Blood samples of IC sampled from 5 agro-ecological zones were collected from which DNA was extracted, amplified by PCR and genotyped using 28 microsatellite markers. A total of 325 (313 indigenous and 12 exotic) chicken were genotyped and revealed a total number of 305 alleles varying between 2 and 22 with a mean of 10.89 per locus. 186 distinct alleles and 60 private alleles were also observed. The frequency of private alleles was highest in samples from the Eastern region, whereas those from the North West had the lowest. The influx of genes was lower in the Eastern agro-ecological zone than the North West. The mean observed heterozygosity was 0.6155, whereas the average expected heterozygosity was 0.688. The overall inbreeding coefficient among the population was 0.040. Divergence from the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was significant in 90% of loci in all the populations. The analysis of molecular variance revealed that about 92% of the total variation originated from variation within populations. Additionally, the study demonstrated that IC in Rwanda could be clustered into four gene groups. In conclusion, there was considerable genetic diversity in IC in Rwanda, which represents a crucial genetic resource that can be conserved or optimized through genetic improvement.

genetics↗