Quote:
Originally Posted by luvlee  Did the introduction of the piebald gene to the yorkie result in the formation of new chromosomes altogether in the Biewer?
If there are chromosomes that are not present in the yorkie, I think that would be reason enough to find the Biewer to be a whole new breed.
Tracey |
All of the chromosomes are somewhat mixed, with a lot of Yorkshire Terrier DNA on each one as well as some DNA from other breeds, but chromosome 20, carrying the piebald gene, is the chromosome in the Biewer that is least like the chromosome 20 of the Yorkshire Terrier. Genes that are close together on the same chromosome tend to be inherited together--this is called linkage--and that could account for chromosome 20 being so different from the Yorkshire Terrier in the Biewers that were tested. Other genes linked to the piebald gene came along the for the ride during the development of the Biewer.