Polymorphisms in MC4R gene and correlations with economic traits in cattle.

MC4R contributes to the control of food intake and energy expenditure, and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the MC4R gene have clearly been associated with backfat depth, feed intake and growth rate in pig. Our objectives were to scan the complete coding region by sequencing in samples from eight cattle breeds, to estimate the frequency of the SNPs in the MC4R gene and to determine if individual genotypes were associated with several economic traits. Five polymorphisms were detected at position 19 (C/A), 20 (A/T), 83(T/C), 128 (G/A), and 1069 (G/C), and the last one was significantly associated with backfat thickness value (P < 0.01, n = 245). The linkage disequilibrium analysis indicated that the SNP markers C19A, A20T, T83C and G128A were completely linked (r (2) = 1).