Agroecology Is Affecting Village Chicken Producers’ Breeding Objective in Ethiopia

This study assessed factors that determine village chicken producers’ trait preferences in different agroecologies of Ethiopia. Three hundred and eighty village chicken producers were sampled for individual interviews. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical techniques. Inbreeding coefficients of chicken populations in the three major agroecologies were estimated. In addition, the multivariate regression model was employed to evaluate the degree to which agroecological difference and socioeconomic and institutional factors impact village chicken producers’ trait preferences. Egg and meat production for consumption and income generation were the three major village chicken production functions in the study. Plumage color and weight were ranked first for male and female chicken, respectively. Red plumage color (52.4%) was the primary choice followed by white color (24.5%). Agroecology and livestock holding (TLU) significantly ( P < 0.05 ) affected farmers’ preference toward economic traits, while land holding significantly ( P < 0.05 ) affected reproductive traits. Distance to market significantly ( P < 0.05 ) affected farmers’ preference toward adaptive traits. The inbreeding coefficient of 0.25, 0.23, and 0.06 was recorded in low, mid, and highland agroecologies, respectively. The agroecological difference is affecting village chicken producers’ breeding objective in Ethiopia. A higher inbreeding coefficient was observed in the low and mid agroecologies. Future breed improvement programs should give due consideration to village chicken producers’ socioeconomic characteristics and agroecological differences.

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Production, Reproduction and Adaptation characteristics of Boran cattle breed under changing climate: A systematic review and meta-analysis

10.1101/2020.12.18.423410 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Merga Bayssa ◽

Sintayehu Yigrem ◽

Simret Betsa ◽

Adugna Tolera

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Systematic Review ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Genetic Correlations ◽

Cattle Breed ◽

Livestock Production ◽

Meat Production ◽

Zebu Cattle ◽

Improvement Programs ◽

Breed Improvement

AbstractIntroductionClimate change has devastating effects on livestock production and productivity, which could threaten livestock-based food security in pastoral and agro-pastoral production systems of the tropics and sub-tropics. Hence, to sustain livestock production in an environment challenged by climate change, the animals must have the ability to survive and produce under extreme conditions. Boran cattle breed is one of the hardiest Zebu cattle reared by Borana Oromo pastoralists for milk and meat production. This paper aims to compile the main production, reproduction and adaptation traits of Boran cattle based on systematic review amd meta-analysis of peer reviewed and published articles on the subject.MethodologyCombination of systematic review and meta-analysis based on PRISMA guideline was employed. Accordingly, out of 646 recorded articles identified through database searching, 64 were found to be eligible for production, reproduction and adaptation characteristics of the Boran cattle, twenty-eight articles were included in qualitative systematic review while 36 articles were used for quantitative meta-analysis.ResultBoran cattle have diversity of adaptation (morphological, physiological, biochemical, metabolic, cellular and molecular) responses to the effects of climate change induced challenges - notably high temperature and solar radiation, rangeland degradation, seasonal feed and water shortages and high incidences of tropical diseases. Meta-analysis using a random-effects model showed estimates of heritability and genetic correlations for reproduction and production traits. In addition, heritability and genetic-correlation estimates found in the present study suggest that there is high genetic variability for most traits in Boran cattle, and that genetic improvement is possible for all studied traits in this breed.ConclusionThe review revealed that Boran cattle exhibit better reproduction, production and adaption potentials as compared to other indigenous zebu cattle breeds in Ethiopia under low-land, poor pasture and water conditions. On other hand, the breed is currently challenged by adverse effects of climate change and other management factors such as high rate of genetic dilution, reduced rangeland productivity, lack of organized breed improvement programs and discriminate selection of gene pool. Thus, we recommend strategic breed improvement and genetic conservation program of Boran cattle breed in collaboration with Borana pastoralists through proper quantification of important traits and estimation of the pure Boran cattle population while controlled cross breeding strategy could be used in urban and peri-urban areas for maximum utilization of adapataion and production pottential of this breed.

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PSVIII-6 Genetic features of Russian Simmental cattle population different origin derived by assessing milk production and fertility traits

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skab235.439 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 99 (Supplement_3) ◽

pp. 241-241

Author(s):

Larisa P Ignatieva ◽

Alexander A Sermyagin ◽

Sergey Nikitin

Keyword(s):

Milk Yield ◽

Live Weight ◽

Reproductive Traits ◽

Selection Response ◽

Meat Production ◽

Fat Percentage ◽

Improvement Strategy ◽

Milk Traits ◽

Simmental Cattle ◽

Breed Improvement

Abstract Since the beginning of the 20th century, over 43 thousand animals of Simmental cattle and related breeds have been imported to Russia from Europe. This had a significant impact on the selection intensity and genetic structure within the pale-motley population. The research included 42 breeding herds from 14 regions of Russia. The EBV using the BLUPF90 program based on the ANIMAL MODEL procedure was calculated. Totally of 1471 bulls by using 61816 daughters were estimated. The heritability coefficients showed moderate variability for milk yield (MY) h2=0.140, fat percentage (FP) h2=0.194, protein percentage (PP) h2=0.184 and live weight h2=0.163, as an indirect predictor for meat production. The variability for fertility features like number of inseminations per conception and days open was h2=0.073 and h2=0.061, respectively. Genetic correlation between MY and FP was rg=0.149, and for MY and PP – rg=0.180, while between FP and PP – rg=0.226. The average bulls’ EBV for milk traits in Red Holsteins consisted +23 kg MY, +0.002% FP and +0.001% PP, by Austrian Simmental +10 kg MY, +0.013% FP and +0.002% PP. For Russian Simmental origin animals was signed negative selection response for MY (-23 kg), FP (-0.001%) and PP (-0.003%). High average EBV for imported Simmental cows were revealed +146 kg MY, +0.009% FP and +0.004% PP, while in Russian Simmental we got negative values for MY -70 kg and PP -0.004% but only for FP was showed positive level +0.001%. Simmental breed improvement strategy in Russia focused not only to increasing milk yield but also to improving milk compositions with stabilizing cows’ reproductive traits using the world gene pool of related breeds from Europe. The study was funded by Ministry of Science and Higher Education No.0445-2021-0016

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ESTIMATION OF GENETIC DIVERGENCE IN CHILLI PEPPER (CAPSICUM ANNUUM L.) GENOTYPES FOR MORPHOLOGICAL AND FRUIT TRAITS UNDER HOT CLIMATE OF UMERKOT, SINDH

Pakistan Journal of Agriculture, Agricultural Engineering and Veterinary Sciences ◽

10.47432/2021.37.1.3 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 37 (1) ◽

pp. 21-28

Author(s):

A. Memon ◽

R. Ahmad ◽

M. S. Depar ◽

A. K. Pathan ◽

D. Ibrar

Keyword(s):

Cluster Analysis ◽

Genetic Divergence ◽

Agricultural Research ◽

Arid Zone ◽

Principal Component ◽

Fruit Weight ◽

Economic Traits ◽

Chilli Pepper ◽

Hot Climate ◽

Improvement Programs

Thirty-two genotypes of chilli from three different sources (local dandicuts, AVRDC and PGRI PARC) were evaluated for the presence of genetic divergence among them for different agro-economic traits i.e., plant height, stem girth, fruit length, fruit girth, number of fruits per plant, number of seed per fruit, fresh fruit weight and dry fruit weight at Arid Zone Agricultural Research Institute, Umerkot, Sindh during 2018. All these genotypes were found to be significantly different from each other for all the studied traits. For further diversity analysis, multivariate analyses like principal component analysis (PCA) and Cluster analysis were also performed to figure out the traits responsible for maximum variability and grouping of genotypes according to their similarities and differences for their future utilization in chilli breeding programs. PCA analysis showed that first four PCs exhibited 82.79% of the total variability among these 32 chilli genotypes. Cluster analysis showed four different sub-clusters and the genotypes from every single source merge in each sub-cluster, thus showing that chilli genotypes are from different geographical backgrounds. Based on these results, the chilli genotypes can be further utilized in future chilli improvement programs in Pakistan. Genotypes AZRI-DS-14, AZRI-DS-01 and AVPP-9804 showed better performance.

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17 Increased inbreeding levels negatively affect sperm kinetics and motility in Purebred Spanish horses

Reproduction Fertility and Development ◽

10.1071/rdv33n2ab17 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 33 (2) ◽

pp. 116

Author(s):

Y. Pirosanto ◽

A. Molina ◽

M. Valera ◽

J. Dorado ◽

E. Terán ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sperm Motility ◽

Sperm Quality ◽

Reproductive Traits ◽

Study Groups ◽

Inbreeding Coefficient ◽

Computer Assisted ◽

Effective Population ◽

Mean Velocity ◽

Sperm Analysis ◽

Head Displacement

Reproductive performance is one of the key factors in livestock production. It is well known that reproductive traits are influenced by several genetic factors, such as the increase of individual inbreeding levels, which are associated with changes in sperm motility and shape in several species. In horses, the increase in inbreeding is a common problem because of the reduction in effective population size and the increase in selection intensity observed in several breeds. However, studies assessing the effect of high levels of inbreeding on the sperm quality of stallions are scarce. In the present study, we aimed to determine the effect of increased inbreeding levels and age on the sperm motility patterns of Purebred Spanish horses (PRE). We performed kinetic characterisation of 557 sperm samples of 82 PRE stallions aged between 3 and16 years, using computer-assisted sperm analysis (Androvision™, Minitube). We evaluated 5 parameters in 6 different fields per sample: curved line velocity (VCL, µm/s), velocity average path (VAP, µm/s), velocity straight line (VSL, µm/s), amplitude of lateral head displacement (ALH, µm), and beat-cross frequency (BCF, Hz). We determined the pedigree-based inbreeding coefficient (Fped) based on ∼300,000 PRE pedigree records to evaluate the inbreeding effect. Individuals were separated into 2 groups: highly inbred (n=339) and lowly inbred (n=218) according to an F value of 12.5%. Differences between groups were analysed using a generalized linear model. The analysis did not show significant differences (P>0.05) in the variables analysed with respect to the age of stallions. However, VAP, VCL, and AHL were lower in highly inbred than in lowly inbred animals (P<0.05), suggesting less velocity and amplitude of head displacement. In the case of BCF, no significant differences (P>0.05) were observed between the two study groups. In conclusion, age did not affect sperm quality parameters in the age group of stallions analysed. In addition, we demonstrated that high inbreeding coefficient reduced the mean velocity and trajectory pattern of spermatozoa in PRE.

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Inbreeding and its effects on some economic traits in Raeini cashmere goats

Proceedings of the British Society of Animal Science ◽

10.1017/s1752756200013065 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 2003 ◽

pp. 147-147 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

M. Moradi-Shaharbabak ◽

A. Mohammadi ◽

S. R. Miraei-Ashtiani

Keyword(s):

Body Weight ◽

Inbreeding Depression ◽

Fiber Length ◽

Inbreeding Coefficient ◽

Base Population ◽

Economic Traits ◽

Breeding Center ◽

Cashmere Goats ◽

Fleece Weight ◽

The Impact

The Breeding Center of Raeini (BCR) cashmere goats was established in 1965 in Kerman province, with a base population of 120, 8 and 42 does, bucks, and kids respectively. Some new animals have been introduced to the BCR population in some periods of time, and selected males have been sold out to the local breeders each year. Animals have been selected based on their phenotypic performance for fleece weight (FW) and fleece color (FC-white), and body weight (BW). Mating system has been planned based on non-relative mating, but some relative mating has been occurred. Inbreeding depression is one of the most important empact of having inbreeding in a population (Miglior and Burnside 1995). A decrease of 0.8% in fiber length and 6.3% in longevity per 10% increase of inbreeding coefficient in cashmere goats has been reported (Deb 1998). The objective of this study was to estimate the animals inbreeding coefficient and to explore the impact of inbreeding on some economic traits in Raeini cashmere goats.

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Application of marker assisted selection for livestock improvement in Bangladesh

Bangladesh Veterinarian ◽

10.3329/bvet.v31i1.22837 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 31 (1) ◽

pp. 1-11 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

M Moniruzzaman ◽

R Khatun ◽

AA Mintoo

Keyword(s):

Dna Sequences ◽

Genetic Gain ◽

Marker Assisted Selection ◽

Breeding Strategy ◽

Meat Production ◽

Economic Traits ◽

Generation Interval ◽

Breeding Programmes ◽

Selection Of

Molecular markers usually do not have any biological effect. They are identifiable DNA sequences, found at specific locations of the genome, and transmitted from one generation to the next. Marker assisted selection (MAS) is a novel technique that can complement traditional breeding methods for rapid genetic gains. Genetic gain through selective breeding is the objective of a breeder to achieve long term improvement in animal and plant genomes; however the pace of improvement is inversely proportional to the Generation Interval. Genetic improvement in livestock, particularly those with long generation intervals, requires decades for tangible results. Successful MAS breeding programmes require gene mapping, marker genotyping, quantitative trait loci (QTL) detection, genetic evaluation and finally MAS. Genomic selection is a form of markerassisted selection. Using markers covering the whole genome could mean potentially that all the genetic variance is explained; and the markers are assumed to be in linkage disequilibrium with the QTL so that the number of effects per QTL to be estimated is small. MAS drastically reduces generation interval and increases selection accuracy. Therefore, a breeding strategy based upon markers making the best use of the two approaches can facilitate rapid genetic gain though selection of markers related to economic traits such as milk and meat production. This review is designed to elaborate the technique of MAS and its application in developing countries. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bvet.v31i1.22837 Bangl. vet. 2014. Vol. 31, No. 1, 1-11

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Identification and validation of a regulatory mutation upstream of the BMP2 gene associated with carcass length in pigs

Genetics Selection Evolution ◽

10.1186/s12711-021-00689-0 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 53 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Jing Li ◽

Song Peng ◽

Liepeng Zhong ◽

Lisheng Zhou ◽

Guorong Yan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gene Expression ◽

Body Size ◽

Bone Growth ◽

Chromosome 17 ◽

Meat Production ◽

Whole Genome ◽

Functional Assays ◽

A Genome ◽

Improvement Programs ◽

Causal Mutation

Abstract Background Carcass length is very important for body size and meat production for swine, thus understanding the genetic mechanisms that underly this trait is of great significance in genetic improvement programs for pigs. Although many quantitative trait loci (QTL) have been detected in pigs, very few have been fine-mapped to the level of the causal mutations. The aim of this study was to identify potential causal single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for carcass length by integrating a genome-wide association study (GWAS) and functional assays. Results Here, we present a GWAS in a commercial Duroc × (Landrace × Yorkshire) (DLY) population that reveals a prominent association signal (P = 4.49E−07) on pig chromosome 17 for carcass length, which was further validated in two other DLY populations. Within the detected 1 Mb region, the BMP2 gene stood out as the most likely causal candidate because of its functions in bone growth and development. Whole-genome gene expression studies showed that the BMP2 gene was differentially expressed in the cartilage tissues of pigs with extreme carcass length. Then, we genotyped an additional 267 SNPs in 500 selected DLY pigs, followed by further whole-genome SNP imputation, combined with deep genome resequencing data on multiple pig breeds. Reassociation analyses using genotyped and imputed SNP data revealed that the rs320706814 SNP, located approximately 123 kb upstream of the BMP2 gene, was the strongest candidate causal mutation, with a large association with carcass length, with a ~ 4.2 cm difference in length across all three DLY populations (N = 1501; P = 3.66E−29). This SNP segregated in all parental lines of the DLY (Duroc, Large White and Landrace) and was also associated with a significant effect on body length in 299 pure Yorkshire pigs (P = 9.2E−4), which indicates that it has a major value for commercial breeding. Functional assays showed that this SNP is likely located within an enhancer and may affect the binding affinity of transcription factors, thereby regulating BMP2 gene expression. Conclusions Taken together, these results suggest that the rs320706814 SNP on pig chromosome 17 is a putative causal mutation for carcass length in the widely used DLY pigs and has great value in breeding for body size in pigs.

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Herd management and breeding practices of holla sheep owners in south wollo zone, Ethiopia

International Journal of Biological Research ◽

10.14419/ijbr.v5i2.8333 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 5 (2) ◽

pp. 41

Author(s):

Adina Akale ◽

Tadlo Mengesha ◽

Addis Getu ◽

Solomon Abegaz

Keyword(s):

Secondary Data ◽

Sampling Technique ◽

Simple Random Sampling ◽

Source Analysis ◽

Record Keeping ◽

Improvement Programs ◽

Breeding Practices ◽

Breed Improvement ◽

Sheep Production ◽

Index Value

This study was aimed to generate organized information on selective breeding objectives, trait's preferences and major constraints of the Holla sheep production system in Kalu and Worebabo districts of South Wollo Zone under small holders' management conditions. The study was performed based on the semi-structured questionnaire, focused group discussions. Secondary data source analysis and field observations were used to generate the required information. In addition, simple random sampling technique was used to select 180 sheep owners. Simple descriptive statistics, ranking trial and chip-square test was considered. The primary purpose of keeping sheep was asset development (income generation) followed by breeding purposes with the index value of 0.365 and 0.201, respectively. Body size/Appearance was the primary preference in both districts for breeding ram index value of 0.258 and 0.207 Kalu and Worebabu, respectively. In the study areas, culling inferior sheep, weaning, record keeping, castrating ram at right age and provision of regular vaccination before disease out breaks were poorly practiced. Age at first sexual maturity of male sheep was 7.3±2.17and 7.23±1.34 months while for females 7.9±1.87 and 5.8±1.16 months in Kalu and Worebabo district, respectively. Disease prevalence and genetic potential were the major production constraints in the entire studied districts. In order to minimize the failure of breed improvement programs it is important to involve farmers considering the existing breeding practices, management systems and trait preferences of the community and the multipurpose roles of targeted animals.

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Rendering Multivariate Statistical Models for Genetic Diversity Assessment in a A-Genome Diploid Wheat Population

Agronomy ◽

10.3390/agronomy11112339 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (11) ◽

pp. 2339

Author(s):

Zareen Sarfraz ◽

Mohammad Maroof Shah ◽

Muhammad Sajid Iqbal ◽

Mian Faisal Nazir ◽

Ibrahim Al-Ashkar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Environmental Influence ◽

Recombinant Inbred Lines ◽

Principal Component ◽

Diploid Wheat ◽

Phenotypic Traits ◽

Total Biomass ◽

Economic Traits ◽

Diversity Assessment ◽

A Genome ◽

Improvement Programs

Diversifying available natural resources to cope with abrupt climatic changes and the necessity to equalize rising agricultural production with improved ability to endure environmental influence is the dire need of the day. Inherent allelic variability regarding significant economic traits featuring both enhanced productivity and environmental adaptability is one such prominent need. To address this requirement, a series of analyses were conducted in this study for exploring natural diploid wheat germplasm resources. The current study involved 98 Recombinant Inbred Lines (RILs) populations developed by crossing two diploid ‘A’ sub-genome wheat species, Triticummonococcum and Triticum boeoticum, enriched with valuable alleles controlling, in particular, biotic and abiotic stresses tolerance. Their 12 phenotypic traits were explored to reveal germplasm value. All traits exhibited vast diversity among parents and RILs via multivariate analysis. Most of the investigated traits depicted significant (p < 0.05) positive correlations enlightening spikelet per spike, total biomass, seed weight per spike, number of seeds per spike, plant height, and days to heading as considerably focused traits for improving hexaploid wheat. Principal component analysis (PCA) exhibited 61.513% of total variation with three PCs for 12 traits. Clustering of genotypes happened in three clades, and the two parents were separated into two extreme clusters, validating their enrichment of diversity. This study provided beneficial aspects of parental resources rich in diverse alleles. They can be efficiently exploited in wheat improvement programs focusing on introgression breeding and the recovery of eroded genetic factors in currently available commercial wheat cultivars to sustain calamities of environmental fluctuations.

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Variant forms of qualitative traits of indigenous chickens reared under extensive system in Tolon District, Ghana

Animal Production Science ◽

10.1071/an19118 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 60 (5) ◽

pp. 705

Author(s):

Peter T. Birteeb ◽

Thomas Boakye

Keyword(s):

Goodness Of Fit ◽

Northern Ghana ◽

Phenotypic Traits ◽

Goodness Of Fit Test ◽

Qualitative Traits ◽

Indigenous Chickens ◽

Type Size ◽

Improvement Programs ◽

Breed Improvement ◽

Local Chickens

Context Rural chicken production in most developing countries is based mainly on scavenging systems with indigenous chickens that have not been properly characterised and classified into well-defined breeds. Aims This study was conducted to identify the variant forms of qualitative phenotypic traits of local chickens in Tolon District, northern Ghana. Methods About 320 adult birds were sampled and data collected by using observation and a chicken colour chart. Traits included head shape; comb type, size and colour; feather distribution; and earlobe, eye, plumage, skin and shank colours. Chi-squared goodness of fit test was used to test whether variant phenotypes of each qualitative trait were equally distributed. The hypothesis of no associations between pairs of traits was tested by using Cramér’s V. Key results There were highly significant (P < 0.01) differences in the distributions of variant phenotypes of all traits. The main comb type observed was single (85.9%), followed by pea (8.8%) and rose (5.3%). A majority of birds had small combs (57.8%), although others had medium (28.4%) and large (13.8%) combs. Females had small to medium combs, whereas males had medium to large combs. A majority of the chickens had white earlobe colour (60.3%), followed by pied red and white (22.5%). Feather distributions observed were normal feathered (84.4%), naked neck (8.4%) and frizzled (7.2%). Five plumage colours were observed, although some were in combinations. White plumage was the most common (22.5%), followed by black (18.8%), with brown/ash the least common (0.03%). Community was significantly (P < 0.01) associated with comb type, size and colour, and eye, shank and skin colours. Also, comb size was significantly associated with sex and comb type. Conclusions Generally, local chickens exhibited heterogynous phenotypes for qualitative traits. Local chickens in the district could be described as normally feathered with wide variation in plumage colours and having mainly single comb type. Implications The knowledge of these variant phenotypes and their associations will serve as baseline information for the characterisation and conservation of local chicken types. It could also provide guidelines in selecting bird ecotypes and/or communities for breed improvement programs in the study area.

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