Paul VanRaden Animal Improvement Programs Laboratory Agricultural Research Service, USDA,...

Paul VanRaden

Animal Improvement Programs LaboratoryAgricultural Research Service, USDA, Beltsville, [email protected]

2007

Improving Animals Each Generation by Selecting from

the Best Gene Sources

Duke Animal Law Conf. 2007 (2) VanRaden 2007

The Next Generation


Goals of Animal Breeders

Provide the world’s food needs

Adapt animals to do new, more profitable jobs

• Actual work (guide dog, draft horse)• Entertainment or companionship• Pharmaceutical production

Use modern selection tools


Natural Selection Tools

Mother nature uses these tools:

• Starve, thirst, or freeze to death• Injury, infection, or disease• Eaten by predators• Males battle each other for mates• Harmful mutations abort or kill young

Mother nature obeys the law of the jungle


Artificial Selection Tools

Animal breeders use these tools:

• Specialization of breeds and lines• Fence or barn or house• Import/export of genetic material• Artificial insemination, progeny test• Embryo transfer• Marker assisted selection

Animal breeders obey economic laws


Reproductive Tools

Year Tool NameDaugh-

ters

1953 Frozen semen Frosty

1974 Embryo transfer Bova 6,241

1982 Embryo splittingDivide, Duplicate

609 479


Potential Future Tools

X, Y sorted semen (already in use)

Embryo splitting (some use)

Adult cloning

Transgenics

Genomic selection (main focus of research)


Family Size

Progeny test• Obtain 100 daughters of each bull• Measure important traits• Select the best bulls for further use

Descendants of 1 bull (Elevation)• 80,000 daughters • 2.3 million granddaughters• 6.5 million great-granddaughters


History of Traits Evaluated

TraitYear

Begun TraitYear

Begun

Milk, fat 1935 Size 1983

Protein 1977 Longevity 1994

Calvingease 1978

Mastitisresistance 1994

Udder 1983 Fertility 2003

Feet/legs 1983 Stillbirth 2006


Trait Emphasis – Dairy Selection

TraitWeight

(%) TraitWeight

(%)

Protein 23 Udder 6

Fat yield 23 Feet/legs 3

Longevity 17 Size −4

Mastitisresistance 9

Calvingease 2

Fertility 9 Stillbirth 4

100%


Data Analysis

National genetic rankings (dairy)

• 200 million monthly records of milk yield and other traits

• 30 million × 30 million relationship matrix among cows and bulls

International genetic rankings• 27 countries on 5 continents• Combined ranking done in Sweden


Best BullO-Bee Manfred Justice

Semen sales 198,000 units/year Semen price $40/unit Income ~$30 million to date 12,670 daughters already milking

• 10,401 in United States• 590 in France, 570 in Italy, 400 in

Denmark, 262 in the Netherlands, etc.


Justice Daughters vs. Average Cows

TraitJustice

daughterAverage Holstein

Milk (gallons/day) 10.5 10.1

Protein (lbs/day) 2.82 2.62

Cell count (1000/ml) 231 288

Productive life (mo) 34.0 27.7

Pregnancy rate (%) 23.9 21.0

Calving difficulty (%) 3% 8%


Computer Mating Programs

For 5 million dairy cows, mate is selected by computer programs

• Inbreeding avoided using pedigrees

• Carriers of same defect not mated

• Weak traits of cow matched to strong traits of bull

• Sires with easy birth chosen for first calf


Milk Yield Progress

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

1957 1965 1973 1981 1989 1997 2005

Birth year

Milk

(g

allo

ns

/da

y)


Single Genes

Some breeds horned (TX longhorn)

Other breeds 100% polled (Angus)

Wild bulls/cows needed horns

Genetic dehorning is easy

Polled (no horn) gene is dominant

Other genes are more valuable


Specialized Animals

Cattle• Dairy, not selected for meat quality• Beef, not selected for milk quality

Chickens• Layers, not selected for meat yield• Broilers, not selected for egg yield

Global use of improved varieties


Breeding Companies

Poultry, swine• Closed, private breeding populations • Central control and vertical integration

Dairy, beef cattle• Open exchange of breeding stock• Producers choose using genetic rankings

Almost no patents or intellectual property


Animal vs. Vegetable Food Costs$ / 50 g protein needed daily

AnimalServ-ings

Cost ($) Vegetable

Serv-ings

Cost ($)

Eggs 6 1.00 Lentils 5 .30

Milk 6 1.40 Peanut B. 7 .70

Cheese 7 1.90 Rice 17 1.00

Hot dogs 10 1.90 Bread 17 1.60

Hamburger 3 2.00 Bananas 38 2.75

Chicken 3 2.40 Soyburger 4 3.45

Steak 1 2.40 Mixed nuts 5 4.00


Citizens Fed/AcreData from year 2000, 1 acre = .435 hectare

ContinentCitizens

(millions)Farmland

(acres)Citizens/

acre

Asia 3,634 1,150 3.2

Africa 767 435 1.8

Europe 729 666 1.1

N. America 495 593 .8

S. America 322 243 1.3

Oceania 30 127 .2


Conclusions

People improve the genetic merit of their animals each generation

Selection tools make fast progress• Improving animal production• Improving animal health

Animal protein is very affordable

North America has few citizens


Acknowledgments

Mel Tooker, Suzanne Hubbard, and Mark McGuire suggested several improvements


Picture Credits

Bull or cow Owner Photographer

FrostyJohn & Melford Hill

ABS Global

Bova Select Sires Jack Remsberg

Duplicate, Divide ABS Global ABS Global

Elevation Select Sires Jack Remsberg

O. Man. Justice Select Sires Frank Robinson

De-Su Oman 6121 John Erbsen

Feisty Fanny TX Longhorn As.

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