Genetic variation at the growth hormone locus in a wild pig intercross; test of association to phenotypic traits and linkage to the blood group D locus.

A polymorphism in the TATA-box of the porcine growth hormone (GH) gene was analysed in a wild pig/Large White intercross, in which 129 markers had been scored previously. Linkage analyses demonstrated that the GH locus belonged to a linkage group on chromosome 12 together with a previously unassigned marker, the erythrocyte antigen D (EAD) locus. The linear order of this linkage group is EAD-GH-S0096-S0090-S0106-arachidonate 12-lipoxygenase (ALOX12)-inhibin beta A (INHBA). The length of the linkage group was estimated at 93 cM (sex average). The effects of the GH genotype on growth and fat deposition traits were investigated using phenotypic data from the 191 F2 animals. No significant effect of GH was detected, and we therefore conclude that this locus does not play a major role in defining the genetic differences between the wild and Large White pigs for these traits.