Conflicting candidates for cattle QTLs

Genome scans have identified quantitative trait loci (QTLs) affecting milk yield and composition in dairy cattle. For one QTL on bovine chromosome 6 (BTA6), previously fine-mapped to a 420-Kb region, mutations in two different genes (OPN and ABCG2) have been proposed as the underlying functional mutation. Comparing the arguments for each gene suggests that both mutations are equally probable. However, functional studies and/or additional populations are required to provide a definite answer.