Both cat breeders and the lay public have interests in the origins of their pets, not only in the genetic identity of the purebred individuals, but also in the historical origins of common household cats. The cat fancy is a relatively new institution with over 85% of its 40-50 breeds arising only in the past 75 years, primarily through selection on single-gene aesthetic traits. The short, yet i...

The objective of this work was to evaluate the genetic diversity of Brazilian Pantaneiro horse by microsatellite markers, investigate the effect of genetic bottlenecks and estimate genetic differentiation among four horse breeds. Genetic variation was estimated through allele frequencies and mean breed heterozygosity. Nei ́s genetic distances among the breeds Pantaneiro, Thoroughbred, Arabian, S...

The Garole is the only known prolific sheep breed in India and is a native of Sunderban, the swampy delta region of West Bengal [1]. Malpura is a popular mutton-type breed of semi-arid tropical region of India. These sheep are known for their hardiness and adaptability to the local environment but prolificacy is low with ewes usually producing single lambs. Increasing prolificacy of the Malpura...

This study aimed at characterising 606 crossbred pigs of three commercially available breed types in terms of their carcass and meat quality. Breed G and H were German Large White (LW)×German Landrace (LR) sows sired with Pietrain (PI) boars, i.e. PI×(LW×LR). Breed S was 25% Duroc (DU), i.e. PI×(DU×LR). Most of the parameters were affected by breed and/or date of slaughter. The meat of crossbre...

Crossbreeding is a common strategy used in tropical and subtropical regions to enhance beef production, and having accurate knowledge of breed composition is essential for the success of a crossbreeding program. Although pedigree records have been traditionally used to obtain the breed composition of crossbred cattle, the accuracy of pedigree-based breed composition can be reduced by inaccurate...

The Booroola fecundity gene (FecB) and growth differentiation factor 9 (GDF9) gene belong to the transforming growth factor β (TGF-β) superfamily. The mutations of these genes have additive effects on the prolificacy in sheep. The aim of the present study was to determine the possible mutations of FecB and FecGH genes in Lory sheep breed of the Lorestan province, Iran. Sixty...

Adjustment factors to allow comparison of EPD from several breed associations for birth, weaning, and yearling weights have been available for more than 10 yr. This paper describes steps to calculate adjustment factors for EPD for 4 carcass traits: marbling score, fat thickness, ribeye area, and retail product percentage. The required information is the same as for the weight traits: 1) breed o...

In an effort to determine whether tropical adaptation influences circulating concentrations of the growth-related hormone IGF-I, 3-breed diallel matings were conducted using temperate Bos taurus (Angus), tropical Bos indicus (Brahman), and tropical Bos taurus (Romosinuano). Purebred Angus, Braham, and Romosinuano and crossbred Angus-Braham, Angus-Romosinuano, and Braham-Romosinuano heifers and ...

The Genetic Basis For Increased Productivity Considerable research by various State Agricultural Experiment Stations and the USDA has clearly demonstrated the potential for increasing beef cattle productivity through crossbreeding. Consequently, the use of crossbreeding for the commercial production of beef is rapidly increasing. Crossbreeding (the mating of animals from different breeds) is si...

Individual pig growth curves were derived on 445 Yorkshire, 323 Hampshire, and 316 Landrace boars and gilts. The range in age was from 1 to 35 d and these growth curves were linear. The regression parameters (x- and y-intercepts, and slopes) were different among the three breeds, and differences between boars and gilts were found in the Yorkshire breed for the y-intercept and slope and in the L...