Genetic and phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial HVR1 region in three breeds of Iranian sheep

The aim of this research was to sequence mitochondrial hypervariable region 1 (HVR1) in three Iranian sheep breeds (Lori, Lori Bakhtiari and Arabic) in order to explore the genetic and phylogenetic diversity of these breeds and also to investigate the maternal association of these breeds with other global breeds. Phylogenetic analysis was carried out using hypervariable region 1 (623 base pair) obtained from 33 animals (12 Arabic, 11 Lori and 10 Lori Bakhtiari breeds) from different parts of the Khuzestan province. After DNA extraction, the HVR1 region was amplified using PCR method. Then, PCR products were sequenced and analyzed using bioinformatics softwares. The phylogenetic tree pattern showed that the Lori and Arabic breeds belong to the haplotype group B and the Lori Bakhtiari breeds belonging to the haplotype group A, which could be due to the different biological origin of these breeds. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) revealed 94% of the genetic variation existing among populations and 4% within populations. Also, the highest and lowest average haplotype diversity for Arabic and Lori breeds were calculated to be 0.95 and 0.61 respectively. Moreover, the calculated FST value indicated that there was a maximum genetic variation between the Lori and Lori-Bakhtiari sheep (0.146) and minimal genetic variation between the Arabic and Lari breeds (0.009). These results indicate high-divergence status of the three Iranian sheep breeds (Lori, Lori Bakhtiari and Arabic) and will influence breeding and conservation strategies adopted for these breeds.