Genome unveils how cats became domesticated

Researchers have sequenced and analysed the cat genome and uncovered the genetic changes that turned the wildcat into a pet.
Cats and humans have shared the same households for at least 9,000 years, but we still know very little about how our feline friends became domesticated, researchers said.
An analysis of the cat genome led by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis unveils some surprising clues.
Cats have a relatively recent history of domestication compared with dogs; canines arose from wolves over 30,000 years ago.
"Cats, unlike dogs, are really only semi-domesticated," said senior author Wes Warren, associate professor of genetics at The Genome Institute at Washington University.

"They only recently split off from wild cats, and some even still breed with their wild relatives. So we were surprised to find DNA evidence of their domestication," said Warren.

The researchers compared the genomes of domestic cats and wild cats, finding specific regions of the domestic cat genome that differed significantly.
The scientists found changes in the domestic cat's genes that other studies have shown are involved in behaviours such as memory, fear and reward-seeking.
These types of behaviours - particularly those when an animal seeks a reward - generally are thought to be important in the domestication process.

"Humans most likely welcomed cats because they controlled rodents that consumed their grain harvests. We hypothesised that humans would offer cats food as a reward to stick around," said Warren.
This meant that certain cats that would normally prefer to lead solitary lives in the wild had an additional incentive to stay with humans. Over time, humans preferred to keep cats that were more docile.
To obtain the high-quality reference genome needed for this research, the team sequenced a domestic female Abyssinian cat named Cinnamon.
The team also looked at a breed called Birman, which has characteristic white paws. The researchers traced the white pattern to just two small changes in a gene associated with hair colour.

They found that this genetic signature appears in all Birmans, likely showing that humans selectively bred these cats for their white paws and that the change to their genome happened in a remarkably short period of time.
The group also compared the cat genome with those of other mammals - including a tiger, cow, dog and human.
The differences they found in the cat genome help explain characteristics such as why cats are almost exclusively carnivorous and how their vision and sense of smell differ from other animals like dogs.
The research was published in the journal PNAS.