A Bayesian outlier criterion to detect SNPs under selection in large data sets.

BACKGROUND: The recent advent of high-throughput SNP genotyping technologies has opened new avenues of research for population genetics. In particular, a growing interest in the identification of footprints of selection, based on genome scans for adaptive differentiation, has emerged. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: The purpose of this study is to develop an efficient model-based approach to perform bayesian exploratory analyses for adaptive differentiation in very large SNP data sets. The basic idea is to start with a very simple model for neutral loci that is easy to implement under a bayesian framework and to identify selected loci as outliers via Posterior Predictive P-values (PPP-values). Applications of this strategy are considered using two different statistical models. The first one was initially interpreted in the context of populations evolving respectively under pure genetic drift from a common ancestral population while the second one relies on populations under migration-drift equilibrium. Robustness and power of the two resulting bayesian model-based approaches to detect SNP under selection are further evaluated through extensive simulations. An application to a cattle data set is also provided. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The procedure described turns out to be much faster than former bayesian approaches and also reasonably efficient especially to detect loci under positive selection.