Genetic history and adaptation of African cattle: Identifying the genetic variants associated with bovine tropical adaptations

A prestigious PhD studentship is available in memory of a distinguished researcher at The Roslin Institute, Professor Steve Bishop. The proposed projects reflect the interests of our late colleague in quantitative genetics. The studentship is fully funded for four years, with an enhanced stipend and consumable allocation to attract the strongest candidates. Three projects are offered in the area in which Professor Bishop was an internationally renowned expert. Selection will be based on the best candidate and their project preference. An obituary recording the life and scientific achievements of Professor Bishop can be accessed via the link below. Informal enquiries may be made to the supervisors of the advertised projects.

Obituary for Professor Steve Bishop: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-agricultural-science/article/obituary-professor-stephen-bishop/37A55A18E1D8FCA56D2BC5B56A3056B8

Identifying genetic variants associated with bovine tropical adaptations is crucial to developing more productive cattle breeds that can tolerate the environmental challenges of sub-Saharan Africa. Despite their lower productivity in comparison to European breeds, native African breeds display markedly better survival rates as a result of thousands of years of both natural and human-imposed selection. The aim of this project is to analyse the genomes of indigenous crossbred cattle from across different agro-ecological zones of East Africa to identify African-specific adaptive mutations.

The history of cattle in Africa is complex, involving a series of migrations of both taurine (Bos taurus taurus) and indicine (Bos taurus indicus) animals, and possibly independent domestication event(s). As a result, modern African cattle are genetic mosaics. Dissecting the genome structure of these populations is expected to reveal the genetic basis of adaptation to biotic and abiotic environmental factors. The goal of this study is to use whole-genome sequence data from East African cattle and a variety of statistical tools to identify genomic regions that have been under selection, including admixture-based tools similar to approaches used to identify the genetic contributions to modern human genomes.

The student will first conduct bioinformatics analyses of the raw sequence data to identify genetic variants. Subsequent population genetic analyses will address several goals: to identify genomic regions with taurine and indicine origins and those showing evidence of selection; to map genomic regions associated with adaptation phenotypes; to characterise the stability of genetic hybrids; and to perform a functional analysis of genomic regions associated with adaptation.

The studentship will provide training in transferable skills and techniques in quantitative and population genetics, statistics, bioinformatics and genomic analysis, The student will be expected to regularly attend seminars, journal clubs and local meetings. There will be opportunities for attendance at national and international conferences.

Applications including a full CV with names and addresses (including email addresses) of two academic referees, should be sent to: Liz Archibald, Postgraduate Research Student Administration, The Roslin Institute and R(D)SVS, The University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush, Midlothian, EH25 9RG. Or emailed to [Email Address Removed].

When applying for the studentship please state clearly the title of the studentship and the supervisors in your covering letter/email.