Molecular techniques employed to trace the Sicilian ovines

Abstract

Genotyping strategies are aimed at defining the genetic profile of individuals through the identification of STRs sequences. The applied methodologies are able to ensure the traceability of the meat along the production chains and the control of the correct animal sampling on the farms. However, the discriminative capacity of alleles is studied through the establishment of the allelic frequency in the ovine population of the territory. This may depend on factors such as race, degree of inbreeding, and local selections. In the research of genetic identity in particular, it is exploited that the probability that two different individuals possess the same genetic pattern is equal to the frequency of that genotype in the population under examination and that the frequency of a genotype characterized by more loci is equal to the product of the frequencies of each single genotype (locus) observed. Therefore, we set the task of fixing and tabulating the data of the genetic profiles of the autochthonous breeds that can then be exploited for the traceability investigations of the animals, according to the application of specific algorithms. In practice, we aim to establish and create the starting point for the interpretation of all the genetic data obtained from the analysis of the Sicilian ovine population, whatever the application to do with it. The ultimate goal of this work is the elaboration of allelic panels typical of the sheep populations that represent the starting point for all genetic tests of forensic investigations. In fact, the discovery of particular alleles identify the tabulated frequency representing the genetic variability distribuited in the region. This has the effect of minimizing the identification errors that are spread in the animal population. We can state that from the analysis of allele frequencies developed by Genalex we can obtain expected heterozygosity data according to Hardy-Weinberg law and the obtained heterozygosity data typical for native breeds. All the allele frequencies were employed to create a database containing all the genotypes. These data were useful in the forensic field for the attribution of the kinships in the sheep.