Genomic analyses of Asiatic Mouflon in Iran provide insights into the domestication and evolution of sheep.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Asiatic mouflon (Ovis gmelini) consists of several subspecies mainly distributed in Armenia, southern Azerbaijan, Cyprus, northern, southern, and western regions of Iran, and eastern and central regions of Turkey nowadays. Genome analyses of Asiatic mouflon in Iran revealed that they could have diverged from the direct ancestor of domestic sheep, and showed genetic introgression into domestic sheep after domestication. However, the impact of the Asiatic mouflon subspecies in Iran on sheep domestication remains unclear.

Results

Here, we conducted a comprehensive population genomics analysis of Asiatic mouflon in Iran with 788 whole-genome sequences (including 40 from Asiatic mouflon), 1104 whole mitogenomes (105 from Asiatic mouflon), and 239 Y chromosomes (21 from

SUBMITTER: Wang DF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12164106 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature