Genome-wide association QTL mapping for teat number in a purebred population of Duroc pigs.

Because of increasing litter size in Western pig breeds, additional teats are desirable to increase the capacity for nursing offspring. We applied genome-wide SNP markers to detect QTL regions that affect teat number in a Duroc population. We phenotyped 1024 animals for total teat number. A total of 36 588 SNPs on autosomes were used in the analysis. The estimated heritability for teat number was 0.34 ± 0.05 on the basis of a genomic relationship matrix constructed from all SNP markers. Using a BayesC method, we identified a total of 18 QTL regions that affected teat number in Duroc pigs; 9 of the 18 regions were newly detected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]