Diversity and evolution of the highly tandem repeat LEI0258 with in MHC-B region in Wuhua three-yellow chicken

To investigate the polymorphism and evolution of Wuhua three-yellow chicken，the tandem repeat LEI0258 located within the B region of chicken major histocompatibility complex（ MHC-B region） was applied. A total of 48 alleles ranging from 181 to 495 bp in 147 samples were found. Three alleles，251（ 0.095），275（ 0.0850）， and 310（ 0.0816） were the most frequency in this breed. Forty-two of 44 alleles defined by DNA sequencing was novel for Wuhua three-yellow chicken. The LEI0258 showed high levels of polymorphism，with 0.830，0.927 and 0.952 for observed heterozygosity，expected heterozygosity and polymorphic information content，respectively. Nine alleles were corresponding to 15 available serotypes. The 44 alleles were classified into seven clusters，based on the SNPs and indels found within the sequences flanking the repeats，of which three was also found in red fowl jungle，indicating that Wuhua three-yellow chicken was of origin from red fowl jungle. The results presented herein suggested that LEI0258 could be used as a candidate molecular marker for uncover genetic diversity，serology and evolution in chicken.