Using SNP to Enhance Fatty Acids Composition in Goat milk

Dairy goats are a potential source of animal protein that can address the future animal protein requirement. Milk and dairy foods are the main source of total fat and saturate fatty acids, risk factors of the coronary heart disease. Other important milk fatty acids, in particular linoleic acid and its conjugated showed anti-carcinogenic, immunological and anti-inflammatory effects. Candidate genes, quantitative trait loci and genome-wide association studies are trying to identify regions associated with milk fat composition in order to select individuals carrying the most favorable composition, but very few markers were identified. A preliminary study was conducted to verify if, using genomic data, the canonical discriminant analysis could be adopted to distinguish goats producing different levels of fatty acids. Further study is required to confirm the results suggesting that a 50 SNP panel could be sufficient.