Perspective Main findings
• Fat-tail is a unique adaptive trait NMENTAL Eight candidate regions identified 
found in indigenous sheep in ENVIRO spanning genes associated with:
Ethiopia whose genetic basis SUSTAINABILITY • Fat deposition (NPR2, HINT2,
remains poorly understood. SPAG8),
• How animals will respond to Living within planetary boundaries • Skeleton structure and
altered temperatures and development (ALX4, HOXB13)
precipitation patterns under • Body temperature regulation
projected changes to climate
depends largely on the genetic Mapping genomic regions (TRPM8)
architecture of traits that are
responsible for mediating local and genes associated with Selection profiles between Ethiopian fat-
rump (A), long fat-tail (B) and short fat-tail 
adaptation to current climate
conditions. the fat-tail, an adaptation (C) sheep vis a vis thin tailed sheep
Approach trait in indigenous sheep
• Using genome-wide 50K SNP
genotypes, we determined the § Candidate regions associated with fat
genetic basis of fat-tail in deposition and body temperature regulation
Ethiopian sheep using 3 selection identified A B C
signature approaches, hapFLK, § Aim is to understand adaptation mechanisms
ZFst and Rsb that enable sheep to cope with feed, water Future steps 
and temperature stress Identify causative mutations 
associated with the candidate genes
Partners
Debre Birhan Research Centre 
(DBRC), Ethiopia; Amhara Regional 
Agricultural Research Institute 
Joram M. Mwacharo, ICARDA (ARARI), Ethiopia; University of 
j.mwacharo@cgiar.org Nottingham, UK
Olivier Hanotte, ILRI
o.hanotte@cgiar.org
The CGIAR Research Program on Livestock thanks all 
donors and organizations which globally support its 
work through their contributions to the CGIAR Trust 
Fund: https://www.cgiar.org/funders/
Sheep cluster based on their tail phenotypes This document is licensed for use under the Creative 
Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence. May 2019