Genetic parameter estimation and molecular foundation of Double-yolk eggs trait in white leghorn

Double-yolk (DY) eggs refer to the presence of two yolks in an egg, and they are often present in fowl flocks. As abnormal eggs, DY eggs occur frequently in the early stages of egg-laying in hens, as well as in hens with early sexual maturity. In order to understand the inheritant pattern of DY eggs...

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Main Authors: Anqi Chen, Xiaoyu Zhao, Haiyan Wang, Xiurong Zhao, Gang Wang, Xinye Zhang, Xufang Ren, Yalan Zhang, Xue Cheng, Xiaofan Yu, Xiaohan Mei, Huie Wang, Menghan Guo, Xiaoyu Jiang, Fuping Zhang, Zhonghua Ning, Lujiang Qu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-07-01
Series:Poultry Science
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0032579125003086
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author Anqi Chen
Xiaoyu Zhao
Haiyan Wang
Xiurong Zhao
Gang Wang
Xinye Zhang
Xufang Ren
Yalan Zhang
Xue Cheng
Xiaofan Yu
Xiaohan Mei
Huie Wang
Menghan Guo
Xiaoyu Jiang
Fuping Zhang
Zhonghua Ning
Lujiang Qu
author_facet Anqi Chen
Xiaoyu Zhao
Haiyan Wang
Xiurong Zhao
Gang Wang
Xinye Zhang
Xufang Ren
Yalan Zhang
Xue Cheng
Xiaofan Yu
Xiaohan Mei
Huie Wang
Menghan Guo
Xiaoyu Jiang
Fuping Zhang
Zhonghua Ning
Lujiang Qu
author_sort Anqi Chen
collection DOAJ
description Double-yolk (DY) eggs refer to the presence of two yolks in an egg, and they are often present in fowl flocks. As abnormal eggs, DY eggs occur frequently in the early stages of egg-laying in hens, as well as in hens with early sexual maturity. In order to understand the inheritant pattern of DY eggs and explore candidate genes associated with DY eggs, we selected over 10,000 white Leghorn (WL) chickens from 4 generations and recorded the data during the egg laying period, including total egg number and the rate of DY egg number during the first 2 months and the period of 18-58 weeks of age (EN2month, EN38, EN58, DY2month, DY38, and DY58), age at first egg (AFE), first egg weight (FEW), and body weight at first egg (BWA). The results of genetic parameter analysis showed that the DY egg rate was a trait with low to medium heritabilities with the values from 0.15 to 0.29. And there were strong positive phenotypic and genetic correlations between DY egg rate and egg production at different age stages, and they were all strongly negatively correlated with AFE. However, the DY egg rate and egg production at different stages had strong positive and negative genetic correlations with BWA and FEW, respectively. We also found that significant differences in these trait values between different generations and cage layers, indicating that generations and cage layers had a certain influence on these traits. Furtherly, we used whole genome-wide association (GWA) analysis to identify genes underlying DY, and 5 candidate genes (EZH2, CNTNAP2, TMEM163, GPC1, and ACMSD) associated with DY2month in WL. Our study improved the understanding of DY eggs in hens, and the genetic parameters of DY eggs, and also provided insights into reducing the production of DY eggs by various selection strategies.
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spelling doaj-art-3cb2da842a704295b1bee4d87d5a02b12025-08-20T03:21:30ZengElsevierPoultry Science0032-57912025-07-01104710506910.1016/j.psj.2025.105069Genetic parameter estimation and molecular foundation of Double-yolk eggs trait in white leghornAnqi Chen0Xiaoyu Zhao1Haiyan Wang2Xiurong Zhao3Gang Wang4Xinye Zhang5Xufang Ren6Yalan Zhang7Xue Cheng8Xiaofan Yu9Xiaohan Mei10Huie Wang11Menghan Guo12Xiaoyu Jiang13Fuping Zhang14Zhonghua Ning15Lujiang Qu16National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, PR ChinaXingrui Agricultural Stock Breeding, Baoding 072550, Hebei Province, PR ChinaHohhot Customs District, Hohhot 010010, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, PR ChinaNational Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, PR ChinaNational Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, PR ChinaNational Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, PR ChinaNational Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, PR ChinaNational Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, PR ChinaNational Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, PR ChinaNational Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, PR ChinaNational Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, PR ChinaXinjiang Production and Construction Corps, Key Laboratory of Protection and Utilization of Biological Resources in Tarim Basin, Tarim University, Alar 843300, PR ChinaNational Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, PR ChinaNational Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, PR ChinaKey Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction in the Plateau Mountainous Region, Ministry of Education, College of Animal Sciences, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, Guizhou Province, PR ChinaNational Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, PR ChinaNational Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, PR China; Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, Key Laboratory of Protection and Utilization of Biological Resources in Tarim Basin, Tarim University, Alar 843300, PR China; Corresponding author. Full postal address: 2 Yuanmingyuan West Road, Haidian District, Beijing, PR China.Double-yolk (DY) eggs refer to the presence of two yolks in an egg, and they are often present in fowl flocks. As abnormal eggs, DY eggs occur frequently in the early stages of egg-laying in hens, as well as in hens with early sexual maturity. In order to understand the inheritant pattern of DY eggs and explore candidate genes associated with DY eggs, we selected over 10,000 white Leghorn (WL) chickens from 4 generations and recorded the data during the egg laying period, including total egg number and the rate of DY egg number during the first 2 months and the period of 18-58 weeks of age (EN2month, EN38, EN58, DY2month, DY38, and DY58), age at first egg (AFE), first egg weight (FEW), and body weight at first egg (BWA). The results of genetic parameter analysis showed that the DY egg rate was a trait with low to medium heritabilities with the values from 0.15 to 0.29. And there were strong positive phenotypic and genetic correlations between DY egg rate and egg production at different age stages, and they were all strongly negatively correlated with AFE. However, the DY egg rate and egg production at different stages had strong positive and negative genetic correlations with BWA and FEW, respectively. We also found that significant differences in these trait values between different generations and cage layers, indicating that generations and cage layers had a certain influence on these traits. Furtherly, we used whole genome-wide association (GWA) analysis to identify genes underlying DY, and 5 candidate genes (EZH2, CNTNAP2, TMEM163, GPC1, and ACMSD) associated with DY2month in WL. Our study improved the understanding of DY eggs in hens, and the genetic parameters of DY eggs, and also provided insights into reducing the production of DY eggs by various selection strategies.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0032579125003086White LeghornDouble-yolk eggsHeritabilityGenome-wide association study
spellingShingle Anqi Chen
Xiaoyu Zhao
Haiyan Wang
Xiurong Zhao
Gang Wang
Xinye Zhang
Xufang Ren
Yalan Zhang
Xue Cheng
Xiaofan Yu
Xiaohan Mei
Huie Wang
Menghan Guo
Xiaoyu Jiang
Fuping Zhang
Zhonghua Ning
Lujiang Qu
Genetic parameter estimation and molecular foundation of Double-yolk eggs trait in white leghorn
Poultry Science
White Leghorn
Double-yolk eggs
Heritability
Genome-wide association study
title Genetic parameter estimation and molecular foundation of Double-yolk eggs trait in white leghorn
title_full Genetic parameter estimation and molecular foundation of Double-yolk eggs trait in white leghorn
title_fullStr Genetic parameter estimation and molecular foundation of Double-yolk eggs trait in white leghorn
title_full_unstemmed Genetic parameter estimation and molecular foundation of Double-yolk eggs trait in white leghorn
title_short Genetic parameter estimation and molecular foundation of Double-yolk eggs trait in white leghorn
title_sort genetic parameter estimation and molecular foundation of double yolk eggs trait in white leghorn
topic White Leghorn
Double-yolk eggs
Heritability
Genome-wide association study
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0032579125003086
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