Single nucleotide polymorphisms in candidate genes associated with milk yield in Argentinean Holstein and Holstein x Jersey cows

BACKGROUND: Research on loci influencing milk production traits of dairy cattle is one of the main topics of investigation in livestock. Many genomic regions and polymorphisms associated with dairy production have been reported worldwide. In this context, the purpose of this study was to identify candidate loci associated with milk yield in Argentinean dairy cattle. A database of candidate genes and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for milk production and composition was developed. Thirty-nine SNPs belonging to 22 candidate genes were genotyped on 1643 animals (Holstein and Holstein x Jersey). The genotypes obtained were subjected to association studies considering the whole population and discriminating the population by Holstein breed percentage. Phenotypic data consisted of milk production values recorded during the first lactation of 1156 Holstein and 462 Holstein x Jersey cows from 18 dairy farms located in the central dairy area of Argentina. From these records, 305-day cumulative milk production values were predicted. RESULTS: Eight SNPs (rs43375517, rs29004488, rs132812135, rs137651874, rs109191047, rs135164815, rs43706485, and rs41255693), located on six Bos taurus autosomes (BTA4, BTA6, BTA19, BTA20, BTA22, and BTA26), showed suggestive associations with 305-day cumulative milk production (under Benjamini-Hochberg procedure with a false discovery rate of 0.1). Two of those SNPs (rs43375517 and rs135164815) were significantly associated with milk production (Bonferroni adjusted p-values < 0.05) when considering the Holstein population. CONCLUSIONS: The results obtained are consistent with previously reported associations in other Holstein populations. Furthermore, the SNPs found to influence bovine milk production in this study may be used as possible candidate SNPs for marker-assisted selection programs in Argentinean dairy cattle. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s40781-018-0189-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.