Unfolding of Population Structure in Dehong Buffalo Using Microsatellite DNA Markers

Dehong buffalo are an indigenous buffalo breed in Yunnan province, China. A total of 81 unrelated samples from Dehong buffalo breeds were genotyped using 15 microsatellite DNA markers from 14 chromosomes to estimate genetic diversity, genetic differentiation and gene flow within populations. A total of 62 alleles were detected across the 15 loci assayed. All the loci were polymorphic and the number of alleles ranged from two to six, giving a mean number of 4.13 alleles per locus. The expected heterozygosity and polymorphism information content of 15 microsatellite loci were 0.6520±0.1526 and 0.5863±0.1789, respectively. Coefficients of genetic differentiation ranged from 0 to 0.0919, with the average of 0.0202. Gene flow at each locus was large, with a mean Nm of 12.1502. The results indicated that the genetic diversity was rich among Dehong buffalo and the genetic differentiation in its sub-populations was relatively low, with larger gene flow and less inbreeding.