猫属（Felis）包括丛林猫、黑足猫、沙猫以及家猫（含3个野生亚种）4个物种。之前的研究表明，猫属属内不同物种之间存在因种间杂交产生的基因渐渗现象，并且基因渐渗也是家猫在起源和驯化过程中获得新表型性状的一种重要途径。但是之前的研究受到小样本数据不足和研究方法有限的制约，无法精确分析在基因组中渐渗基因的种类、分布、功能、所受的选择压力以及对物种适应性进化的作用。另外渐渗基因对家猫的起源、驯化和形态多样性变化的遗传贡献也尚不清楚。本研究将开展对丛林猫、黑足猫和沙猫的全基因组图谱的解析并对不同种群个体进行重测序工作，利用基因组比较技术分析猫属物种种间杂交基因，并评估其对猫属物种形成、分化和适应性进化的作用；通过基因注释和功能分析进一步解析渐渗基因对家猫的人工驯化和表型多样性变化的作用。此项研究的结果将对深入理解杂交渐渗在物种分化和家养动物驯化中的作用都具有重要意义。

Felis includes four species: jungle cat, black-footed cat, sand cat and domestic cat (three wild subspecies). Previous studies shown the proof of hybridization-induced introgressions among different species of Felis, which also contribute to present the new phenotype during the domestication of domestic cats. However, limited by the insufficient data and methods, previous researches unable to accurately analyze the gene function, distribution, selective pressures and the role of gene introgression in evolution. In addition, the genetic contribution from introgression to cats’ domestication and morphological diversity remains unclear now. In this proposal, we will apply the whole genome comparison methods to search the introgressed genes among Felis species’ genomes with generating the high-quality genome assembly and gene annotation of all Felis. This work focusses on the better understanding about the role of gene introgression during the origin and adaptive evolution of Felis and the selection signatures of these genes as well. Moreover, further analysis will be carried out to evaluate the function of identified introgressed genes which contribute to cats’ domestication and phenotypic diversity. The results of this study are of better understanding the genetic mechanism of hybridization in species differentiation and domestication.