Genome-wide association study of bone quality and feed efficiency-related traits in Pekin ducks.

Feeding and bone traits are vital for breeding and reproduction in the commercial duck industry. In this study, we performed a genome-wide association study for feeding and bone traits in a population of 540 lean-type Pekin ducks, followed by genotyping-by-sequencing procedures. The genetic parameters of feeding and bone traits were also estimated using genomic information. In total, seventy-eight significant SNPs were determined, and eleven of them reached the genome-wide significant level for 7 traits except for body weight at 42-day old. A peak of genome-wide significant SNPs was detected on chromosome 2 for feed conversion ratio (P-value = 7.46E-11), and the top SNP (P-value = 2.23E-08) for bone-breaking strength was also obtained in the upstream of gene RAPGEF5. This study provided a list of novel markers and candidate genes associated with feeding and bone traits in Pekin ducks, which could contribute to the genetic selection in duck breeding.