For many years the Y chromosome had been difficult to study due to its repeating sequences and many palindromes within it. With new technology surfacing, Scientists at Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences have made it their goal to uncover the secrets of the Y chromosome in horses. If successful in decoding and solving the mysteries that lie within its sequences the researchers believe they can help obtain knowledge of the last 1500 years pertaining to horse lineage and the evolution of equines in the world.
Due to breeding with equines being easily traced using the stallions DNA researchers can trace those lineages using the Y chromosome to see an individuals paternal ancestry and accurately look at what traits it inherited and go further than what is recorded about these equines. Studying these ancestries can help conserve rarer breeds by showing which parental ancestries were exposed to incest which causes birth defects like club foot and even loss of fertility that could end a whole line of future generations. The impact that this can have on the equine industry and future studies on the Y chromosome will be tremendous and will serve as a base for the build up of new research regarding other mammalian Y chromosomes.
Sources:
https://www.agdaily.com/livestock/horse-genetics-secrets-discovered-breeding-conservation/
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/11/241119181604.htm
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