Changes in the Population Genetic Structure of Captive Forest Musk Deer (Moschus berezovskii) with the Increasing Number of Generation under Closed Breeding Conditions

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Forest musk deer is an endangered species. Musk produced by male musk deer is precious natural flavor and an important ingredient of traditional Chinese medicines. Forest musk deer is a territorial animal, and it is very difficult for captive forest musk deer to record the accurate pedigree using the “Breeding Management System of Rotated Mating” (BMS-RM). In the study, we examined the genetic structure of captive forest musk deer population in Barkam center, and the changes in allele diversity, heterozygosity and inbreeding coefficient with increasing generations. The results show that the population has high genetic diversity, but the genetic structure of different generations in the population shows that the extent of inbreeding is slowly increasing with increasing number of generations. This suggests that the BMS-RM is effective for maintaining genetic structure diversity of population, but captive forest musk deer in Barkam center still face the risk of inbreeding increasing. So, it is necessary to optimize the BMS-RM of captive forest musk deer or introduce male forest musk deer from an unrelated population. This study revealed the status of genetic diversity of captive forest musk deer in Barkam center and the current risks of inbreeding for providing an important understanding to the application of BMS-RM. ABSTRACT: We investigated the genetic diversity of the population of captive forest musk deer (Moschus berezovskii) in Barkam Musk Deer Breeding Centre using twelve microsatellite markers, and then analyzed the change in genetic structure of successive generation groups from the population. The data provide a new understanding for the evaluation and usage of the breeding management system. Microsatellite marker analysis detected 141 alleles with an average of 11.75 alleles for each marker. The average expected heterozygosity (H(E)) was 0.731. Performing an F-statistical analysis on the data showed that the genetic diversity of population decreased, and the inbreeding coefficient significant increased with the increase of generation, and F(IS) of the 1st generation is significantly lower than that of the second to fifth generation (p < 0.01). The result suggested that the captive population was facing the pressure of inbreeding (F(IS) = 0.115) and the subsequent loss of genetic diversity. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the breeding management system of the captive population by preventing close relatives from mating or inducing new individuals from the exotic population.