Polymorphism of SNPs in EGFR intron 1 and its association with growth traits in Sinonovacula constricta

In order to study the correlation between EGFR gene and growth traits (shell length, shell width, shell height and body weight), we analyzed the variation of EGFRintron 1 sequence from Sinonovacula constricta by using direct sequencing. There were 17 SNP sites in intron 1, named SNP1–SNP17 respectively. Based on Chi-square test, the 13 sites were fitted to Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, and the 10 sites showed moderate polymorphism through polymorphism detection (0.25<PIC<0.5). The correlation between SNPs and growth traits (shell length, shell width, shell height, and body weight) were further analyzed using a General Linear Model and multiple comparisons, and the results showed that a total of 16 SNP sites were significantly associated with shell length, shell width, shell height and body weight. The results suggest thatEGFR gene could be used as potential genetic marker for molecular breeding. The study also laid a foundation for further research on its growth function.