Genetic variability among sheep breeds by random amplified polymorphic DNA-PCR

Random amplified polymorphic DNA-polymerase chain reaction (RAPD-PCR) was employed to assess the genetic variability and phylogenetic relationship among six breeds of sheep, viz., Malpura, Kheri, Chokla, Garole and two crossbreds Avikalin and Bharat Merino. Twenty-four individuals from each breed/crossbred were selected randomly. Initially, 40 primers were screened, of which 16 were found polymorphic and utilized for estimation of genetic variability and phylogenetic relationship among the breeds. The genetic distance was found highest between Malpura and Garole (D=0.1428), and the lowest (D=0.0612) between Avikalin and Chokla. However, the genetic identity was observed highest (I=0.9406) between Avikalin and Chokla and the lowest (I=0.8669) between Malpura and Garole. The Kheri sheep was found close with Chokla (D=0.0741), followed by Malpura sheep (D=0.0902) based on genetic distance. The phylogenetic tree also showed that Avikalin and Chokla are more close, whereas Malpura and Garole are distant to each other. The present study suggested that RAPD-PCR can be used successfully for analyzing genetic variation and phylogenetic relationship among breeds of sheep.