The aim of this research was to identify variation in the yak lipin-1 gene (LPIN1) and determine whether this variation affects milk traits. PCR-single stranded conformational polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) analysis was used to detect variation in the 5' untranslated region of LPIN1 in 500 yaks from four populations: Tianzhu white yaks, Qinghai yaks, wild × domestic-cross yaks and Gannan yaks. Four unique PCR-SSCP patterns, representing four different DNA sequence variants (named A, B, C and D), were observed. These contained six single nucleotide polymorphisms. Female Gannan yaks with BC genotype produced milk with a higher fat content (P < 0.001) and total milk solids (P < 0.001), than those with the AA, AB and BB genotypes. These results would suggest that LPIN1 is having an effect on yak milk fat synthesis.
Keywords: LPIN1; milk traits; polymorphism; yak.