Abstract:

A meta-analysis was performed for the Quantitative Trait Loci (QTL) related to meat color to estimate the number and refine the positions of QTL. With the software Biomercator2.1, 71 meat color QTL were collected from 22 published papers and projected to the swine linkage map of USDA-MARC 2.0 as a reference map, and an integrated map of meat color QTL in swine was established. 18 meta-QTL were obtained by meta-analysis which reduced the confidence intervals compared to individual QTL estimates. The reduction in the confidence interval ranged from 21.12% to 93.91%, and 9 of them were narrowed down more than 50%. The confidence interval of MQTL4 in SSC4 was shrunk to 1.00 cM, with the reduction rate as 93.91%, and with the marker SW524 on the left and the marker SW 818 on the right. These results offered more precise QTL position estimates, and could lead to a basis for gene mining and molecular breeding in swine.