ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the development of theory and methodology for linkage map pooling and bridging. It presents likelihood methods and nonparametric methods for statistical hypotheses on gene orders. Hypothesis tests among the mapping populations at different levels of linkage map construction are needed to make decisions on whether the linkage maps can be pooled or bridged and if so, on how to do it. Linkage map pooling and bridging provide not only ways to make the connections among the linkage maps, but also to validate the efficiency of the mapping strategies. Comparative mapping has been used for human and mouse genome mapping in order to increase the efficiency and reduce the cost. The statistical aspects of linkage map construction involve testing for segregation ratio distortion, two-point linkage analysis, recombination fraction estimation, linkage grouping, locus ordering and multipoint map distance estimation.
