Genetic Diversity and Population Structure of Two Mexican Creole Cattle Populations

Abstract

Creole cattle are considered valuable animal genetic resources because of the genetic variation associated with the adaptations they have accumulated over generations. The objective of this study was to analyze two populations of Creole cattle (Coreño and Raramuri) in Mexico using genome-wide single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). To genetically characterize these populations, the diversity among the Creole cattle was studied, and their population structure was determined with respect to reference populations. The genetic diversity of the Creole populations was high, whereas homozygosity was low and was associated with ancient historical events. The Creole populations of Mexico clustered close to the European populations and shared their own Creole ancestral component. These findings provide crucial genetic information for the establishment of conservation programs for these populations, particularly for Coreño, where a relatively small contemporary effective size was found.