The Premium Grains for Livestock Program (PGLP) represents a coordinated national effort to: (i) understand the factors determining nutritional value of grains for animals; (ii) improve nutritional value through processing, breeding and storage; (iii) develop rapid methods for measuring determinants of grain quality; and (iv) develop computer programs to predict animal performance and economic ...

In the present study, the polymorphism of myostatin gene (MSTN) in native chickens of Western Azerbaijan Rearing and Breeding Institute was investigated. The blood samples were collected from eighty two randomly selected hens. Genomic DNA was extracted from blood samples and a fragment of myostatin including 599 bp in promoter and exon 1 was amplified using PCR method. Breeding values for body ...

The objective of this study was to develop a transparent, comprehensive, and flexible model for each trait for the formulation of breeding objectives for sow traits in swine breeding programs. Economic values were derived from submodels considering a typical Australian pig production system. Differences in timing and expressions of traits were accounted for to derive economic weights that were ...

the objective of the present study was to determine polymorphism within the promoter region of somatotropin receptor genes in indigenous sistani cattle (bos indicus) and associations between this polymorphism and breeding value of birth weight. the pedigree structure was included by considering 1173 animals with 600 progeny birth weight data obtained from a zhark breeding station in sistan and ...

the first step in breeding programs is detecting the genetic diversity in breeding materials. molecular markers help to reduce costs and time in breeding programs. genetic variation in 49 genotypes of tobacco were studied using 12 issr markers, 3 retrotransposon markers and the combination of issr and retrotransposons. one hundred forty seven polymorphic bands were produced using 16 primers. to...

A simple model of random copying among individuals, similar to the population genetic model of random drift, can predict the variability in the popularity of cultural variants. Here, we show that random drift also explains a biologically relevant cultural phenomenon--changes in the distributions of popularity of dog breeds in the United States in each of the past 50 years. There are, however, i...

Researchers are currently refining the concept and theory of trust to focus on identifying the bases of trust within specific domains. This paper examines the development of trust within the domain of agricultural water policy, where trust is a critical resource for solving collective action problems. The analysis uses data from a mail survey of farmers in agricultural water policy to integrate...

 Objectives to target: This relates to asking ‘Where to go?’, whereas Tools and Strategies below relate to ‘How to get there?’ Breeding objectives describe the type of animal that we might want to develop, or, more commonly, describe the utility of marginal genetic changes in each trait of commercial value. However, there is increasing concern about loss of genetic diversity, both within and b...

Control over management of the world’s resources is increasingly contested because of economic, political and biophysical globalization, and increasing demands of a growing population of more than 6 billion. This has led to new interest in indigenous or traditional knowledge in many areas, including agriculture and plant breeding. Farmers were the first plant breeders, beginning with domesticat...