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In Iberia there are 51 officially recognized cattle breeds of which 15 are found in Portugal and 38 in Spain. We present here a comprehensive analysis of the genetic diversity and structure of Iberian cattle. Forty of these breeds were genotyped with 19 highly polymorphic microsatellite markers. Asturiana de los Valles displayed the greatest allelic diversity and Mallorquina the least. Unbiased heterozygosity values ranged from 0.596 to 0.787. The network based on Reynolds distances was star-shaped with few pairs of interrelated breeds and a clear cluster of 4 breeds (Alistana/Arouquesa/Marinhoa/Mirandesa). The analysis of the genetic structure of Iberian cattle indicated that the most probable number of population clusters included in the study would be 36. Distance results were supported by the STRUCTURE software indicating a relatively recent origin or possible crossbreeding or both between pairs or small groups of breeds. Five clusters included 2 different breeds (Betizu/Pirenaica, Morucha/Avilena, Parda de Montana/Bruna de los Pirineos, Barrosa/Cachena, and Toro de Lidia/Brava de Lide), 3 breeds (Berrenda en Negro, Negra Andaluza, and Mertolenga) were divided in 2 independent clusters each, and 2 breeds were considered admixed (Asturiana de los Valles and Berrenda en Colorado). Individual assignation to breeds was not possible in the 2 admixed breeds and the pair Parda de Montana/Bruna de los Pirineos. The relationship between Iberian cattle reflects their geographical origin rather than their morphotypes. Exceptions to this geographic clustering are most probably a consequence of crossbreeding with foreign breeds. The relative genetic isolation within their geographical origin, the consequent genetic drift, the adaptation to specific environment and production systems, and the influence of African and European cattle have contributed to the current genetic status of Iberian cattle, which are grouped according to their geographical origin. The greater degree of admixture observed in some breeds should be taken into account before using molecular markers for genetic assignment of individuals to breeds.

DNA samples from 307 males of 13 Portuguese native cattle breeds, 57 males of the 3 major exotic breeds in Portugal (Charolais, Friesian, and Limousin), and 5 Brahman (Bos indicus) were tested for 5 single nucleotide polymorphisms, 1 "indel," and 7 microsatellites specific to the Y chromosome. The 13 Y-haplotypes defined included 3 previously described patrilines (Y1, Y2, and Y3) and 10 new haplotypes within Bos taurus. Native cattle contained most of the diversity with 7 haplotypes (H2Y1, H3Y1, H5Y1, H7Y2, H8Y2, H10Y2, and H12Y2) found only in these breeds. H6Y2 and H11Y2 occurred in high frequency across breeds including the exotics. Introgression of Friesian cattle into Ramo Grande was inferred through their sharing of haplotype H4Y1. Among the native breeds, Mertolenga had the highest haplotype diversity (0.68 +/- 0.07), Brava de Lide was the least differentiated. The analyses of molecular variance showed significant (P < 0.0001) differences between breeds with more than 64% of the total genetic variation found among breeds within groups and 33-35% within breeds. The detection of INRA189-104 allele in 8 native breeds suggested influence of African cattle in breeds of the Iberian Peninsula. The presence in Portuguese breeds of Y1 patrilines, also found in aurochs, could represent more ancient local haplotypes.

Population structure and genetic diversity in the Portuguese native breeds of pigs Alentejano (AL), Bisaro (BI), and Malhado de Alcobaca (MA) and the exotic breeds Duroc (DU), Landrace (LR), Large White (LW), and Pietrain were analyzed by typing 22 microsatellite markers in 249 individuals. In general, the markers used were greatly polymorphic, with mean total and effective number of alleles per locus of 10.68 and 4.33, respectively, and an expected heterozygosity of 0.667 across loci. The effective number of alleles per locus and expected heterozygosity were greatest in BI, LR, and AL, and least in DU. Private alleles were found in 9 of the 22 markers analyzed, mostly in AL, but also in the other breeds, with the exception of LW. The proportion of loci not in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium in each breed analyzed ranged between 0.23 (AL) and 0.41 (BI, LW, and Pietrain), mostly because of a less than expected number of heterozygotes in those loci. With the exception of MA, all breeds showed a significant deficit in heterozygosity (F(IS); P < 0.05), which was more pronounced in BI (F(IS) = 0.175) and AL (F(IS) = 0.139), suggesting that inbreeding is a major concern, especially in these breeds that have gone through a genetic bottleneck in the recent past. The analysis of relationships among breeds, assessed by different methods, indicates that DU and AL are the more distanced breeds relative to the others, with the closest relationship being observed between LR and MA. The degree of differentiation between subpopulations (F(ST)) indicates that 0.184 of the total genetic variability can be attributed to differences among breeds. The analysis of individual distances based on allele sharing indicates that animals of the same breed generally cluster together, but subdivision is observed in the BI and LR breeds. Furthermore, the analysis of population structure indicates there is very little admixture among breeds, with each one being identified with a single ancestral population. The results of this study confirm that native breeds of pigs represent a very interesting reservoir of allelic diversity, even though the current levels of inbreeding raise concerns. Therefore, appropriate conservation efforts should be undertaken, such as adopting strategies aimed at minimizing inbreeding, to avoid further losses of genetic diversity.