We discuss the evolutionary origin and elaboration of sociality using an indirect genetic effects perspective. Indirect genetic effects models simultaneously consider zygotic genes, genes expressed in social partners (especially mothers and siblings), and the interactions between them. Incorporation of these diverse genetic effects should lead to more realistic models of social evolution. We fi...

When relatives mate, their inbred offspring often suffer a reduction in fitness-related traits known as "inbreeding depression." There is mounting evidence that inbreeding depression can be exacerbated by environmental stresses such as starvation, predation, parasitism, and competition. Parental care may play an important role as a buffer against inbreeding depression in the offspring by allevi...

Inbreeding coefficients of artificially bred Ayrshire, Guernsey, Holstein, Jersey, and Brown Swiss cows were calculated from relationships between sires and maternal male ancestors. Percentages of inbred cows and average inbreeding coefficients of inbred cows were: Ayrshire, 26 and 11%; Guernsey, 11 and 4%; Holstein, 31 and 1%; Jersey 23 and 2%; and Brown Swiss, 23 and 2%. Percentages of inbred...

Estimates of genetic parameters resulting from various analytical models for birth weight (BWT, n = 4,155), 205-d weight (WWT, n = 3,884), and 365-d weight (YWT, n = 3,476) were compared. Data consisted of records for Line 1 Hereford cattle selected for postweaning growth from 1934 to 1989 at ARS-USDA, Miles City, MT. Twelve models were compared. Model 1 included fixed effects of year, sex, age...

BACKGROUND Given that no influence of inbreeding on life expectancy could be demonstrated in Irish Wolfhounds in a previous study, it was decided to test the influence of inbreeding and other parameters on fertility in this breed. METHODS The study was based on all Irish Wolfhound litters registered in Sweden between 1976 and 2007 (n = 822 litters) as provided by the Swedish Kennel Club (SKK)...

There is growing evidence that sex determination in a wide range of organisms is determined by interactions between maternal-effect genes and zygotically expressing genes. Maternal-effect genes typically produce products (e.g., mRNA or proteins) that are placed into the egg during oogenesis and therefore depend upon maternal genotype. Here it is shown that maternal-effect and zygotic genes are ...

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of maternal inbreeding on incidence of twinning,dystocia and stillbirth in Holstein cows of Iran. Calving records from March 2000 to April 2009 comprisingof 365,021 calvings on 153,802 cows from 86 dairy herds were used. The mean level of inbreeding was0.7%, less than 37% of all animals were inbred, and a small proportion (3.45%) of inbree...

A pedigree file consisting of 5860 individuals, 167 sires and 1582 dams collected at Makooei sheep breeding station (MSBS) during a period of 24 years (1990 to 2013) was used to calculate the inbreeding coefficients to reveal any probable effects of inbreeding (F) on the studied traits. The studied traits were classified to the five main groups including body weight, Kleiber ratio, body measure...

Calving is a key event on any cattle farm, with both economic and animal welfare consequences when complications arise. Although mostly reported in highly selected breeds, problematic calving performance is also a worry to the unselected dualpurpose Murboden breed, local to Austria. Th is study presents genetic parameter estimates for calving ease and stillbirth in Murboden cattle. Furthermore,...

The effects of systematically increasing levels of inbreeding upon growth and postnatal maternal ability were determined in laboratory mice by utilizing the reciprocal crossfostering technique. Two experiments were conducted. The first included postnatal dams which were inbred 0, 12, 25 and 38% while corresponding levels in the litter were 0, 22, 38 and 50%, respectively. The second experiment ...