Genetic diversity of improved rural varieties vis-à-vis indigenous chicken of Andhra Pradesh using D-loop region of mitochondrial DNA

Goli, R.C., Muralidhar, M., Vinoo, R. and Kumari, K.N.R. 2023. Genetic diversity of improved rural varieties vis-à-vis indigenous chicken of Andhra Pradesh using D-loop region of mitochondrial DNA. Indian Journal Poultry Science, 58(3): 207–213.

The study was aimed to characterize the mitochondrial D-loop region of the Rajasri, Vanaraja and Aseel from Andhra Pradesh and understand their genetic relationship and phylogenetic status. Unrelated 18 blood samples were collected from three different chicken genetic groups (Rajasri, Vanaraja and Aseel) in various parts of Andhra Pradesh. From the blood samples, DNA was extracted and amplification of D-loop mitochondrial region was done. The sequences representing other Indian Red Jungle fowl, White Leg Horn and Rhode Island Red sequences were also used for the analysis. Among that 67 haplotypes (h) with Haplotype diversity (Hd) of 0.984 from all the sequences and the 18 sequences belonging to the three genetic groups revealed 9 haplotypes with Haplotype diversity of 0.817 were noticed. The DNA polymorphism is relatively low and populations are highly differentiated in the three genetic groups. Phylogenetic analysis revealed the monophyletic origin of the three genetic groups and different sub-clustering of the individuals from different populations. Further studies including other backyard poultry breeds and their progenitors would provide insights into their phylogenetic status.