Introduction
Ethioipian cattle breeds are the core to sustain the livelihoods of most of the farming and pastoral communities. Indigenous breeds are known for their better adaptation for low input systems, heat tolerance, disease resistance, local preferences, and cultural and aesthetic values. The unique genetic background of Ethiopian cattle and their adaptation to the low input system support their conservation and breed development. However, common for developing countries, the genetic diversity and the genetic merits of most Ethiopian indigenous cattle populations are not yet well understood and exploited. Consequently, some of the indigenous cattle populations are already extinct and endangered, while the risk status of many of them is unknown. A recent microsatellite based study revealed that most Ethiopian cattle breeds are under threat from uncontrolled breeding practices and are at high risk of becoming genetically homogenous [1].
Studies on genetic diversity of Ethiopian cattle have focused on limited cattle breeds, and all of these studies employed low-density microsatellite, mitochondrial, or Y-chromosome markers [1, 2]. A wide range of molecular markers has been developed and used for molecular characterization of populations. Among these, single nucleotides polymorphisms (SNPs) are the most abundant molecular markers in the genome. They are widely dispersed throughout genomes, with a variable distribution among species; genotyping results are easy to reproduce in different laboratories and are simple to score. The usefulness of SNPs in population diversity and structure studies has been demonstrated in several studies in livestock species [3-6].
Although a large number of SNPs have been identified from the bovine genome-sequencing project, few of these have been validated at large in Bos indicus breeds. Yet, the level of polymorphism in Ethiopian cattle population has not been known and analyzed. Prior to this study, no SNPs have been described for these populations. Hence, we report the first preliminary findings on SNP variation in Ethiopian indigenous cattle populations and Hanwoo breed. This study is part of the collaborative project between the Korean Government, the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research, and the International Livestock Research Institute, designed with the objectives to estimate genetic diversity between and within populations using SNP markers. We also evaluated the level of SNP polymorphisms in selected Ethiopian cattle populations and compared to the Hanwoo cattle breed.