Asymmetry is an indicator of genetic and environmental stressors in organisms and plays an important role in developmental instability. It is suggested that symmetrical individuals do generally have faster growth, higher fecundity, and better survival. To identify Quantitative trait loci affecting some asymmetric traits in Japanese quail, a three-generation resource population was developed by using two distinct Japanese quail strains, wild and white. Eight pairs of white (S) and wild (W) birds

more »

... were crossed reciprocally and 34 F1 birds were produced. The F1 birds were intercrossed to generate 422 F2 offspring. All of the animals from three generations (453 birds) were genotyped for eight microsatellite markers on chromosome 1. Bone length measured by a digital caliper and bone weighed with an accuracy of 0.1 g. QTL analysis was conducted applying the line-cross model and the least-squares interval mapping approach. Among 12 examined traits, 6 QTL were identified in 59, 70, 134, 156, 164, and 184 cM on chromosome 1. Variance of detected QTL was ranged from 0.37 to 5.29%.