Haplotype-based genome-wide association studies reveal new loci for haematological and clinical-biochemical parameters in Large White pigs

We report haplotype-based GWASs for 33 blood parameters measured in 843 Italian Large White pigs. In the single-trait analysis, a total of 30 QTL for number of basophils, six erythrocyte traits (haemoglobin, haematocrit, mean corpuscular haemoglobin, mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration, mean corpuscular volume and red blood cell count) and two clinical-biochemical traits (alkaline phosphatase and Ca2+ contents) were identified. In the multiple-trait analysis, a total of five QTL affected three different clusters of traits. Only four of these QTL were already reported in the single-marker and multi-marker GWASs we previously carried out on the same pig population. QTL on SSC11 and SSC17 showed effects on multiple traits. These results further dissected the genetic architecture of parameters that could be used as proxies in breeding programmes for more complex traits. In addition, these results might help to better define the pig as an animal model for several blood-related biological functions.