Popolazioni ovicaprine del Piemonte: la salvaguardia della biodiversità

The paper summarizes the results of a genetic investigation on seven sheep (Biellese, Delle langhe, Frabosana, Garessina, Sambucana, Savoiarda, Tacola) and two goat (Roccaverano, Vallesana) local populations reared in Piedmont. Both protein and microsatellite markers were used to analyse the within-population variability and their genetic relationships. The lowest variability was observed for the Garessina and Savoiarda, characterized by a very limited population size; moreover, in the Savoiarda a strong phenomenon of genetic drift was observed. Concerning the goat populations, Vallesana showed the lowest variability. The analysis of the genetic relationships between the sheep populations indicated the highest similarity for the comparison Biellese-Tacola; the Savoiarda is the population that most differs from the others. The overall results suggest the need of urgent programmes of conservation for the Garessina and Savoiarda, for both their low variability and high degree of genetic originality.