Analysing the Genetic Diversity of Domestic and Wild Goats in Spain

We have undertaken the genetic analysis of seven Spanish goat breeds (N=176, Blanca de Rasquera, Bermeya, Malagueña, Florida, Murciano-Granadina, Palmera and Mallorquina) with the 50K Goat BeadChip. Other caprine populations from Europe (Carpathian and Saanen, N=30) and Africa (Tunisia, Djallonké and Sahel, N=50) have been also analysed. In general, Spanish goat breeds displayed a European genetic background, showing a closer affinity to Saanen and Carpathian goats than to their African counterparts. Besides, the Palmera breed, native to the Canarian archipelago, showed a strong differentiation with regard to the remaining populations. This feature may be the consequence of an ancient founder effect and prolonged geographic isolation. Indeed, analysis of ancient mitochondrial data is consistent with this interpretation. On the other hand, we have initiated the analysis of the genomic diversity of three subspecies of the Spanish ibex (Capra pyrenaica) through a whole genome sequencing approach. Two of these subspecies (Capra pyrenaica hispanica and C. p. victoriae) have experienced strong bottlenecks from which they have recovered, while C. p. pyrenaica became extinct in 2,000. Our goal is to estimate the impact of the C. p. pyrenaica extinction in the gene pool of the Spanish ibex.