Danish Red Research Articles

Assessing the genetic background and genomic relatedness of red cattle populations originating from Northern Europe

BackgroundLocal cattle breeds need special attention, as they are valuable reservoirs of genetic diversity. Appropriate breeding decisions and adequate genomic management of numerically smaller populations are required for their conservation. At this point, the analysis of dense genome-wide marker arrays provides encompassing insights into the genomic constitution of livestock populations. We have analyzed the genetic characterization of ten cattle breeds originating from Germany, The Netherlands and Denmark belonging to the group of red dairy breeds in Northern Europe. The results are intended to provide initial evidence on whether joint genomic breeding strategies of these populations will be successful.ResultsTraditional Danish Red and Groningen White-Headed were the most genetically differentiated breeds and their populations showed the highest levels of inbreeding. In contrast, close genetic relationships and shared ancestry were observed for the populations of German Red and White Dual-Purpose, Dutch Meuse-Rhine-Yssel, and Dutch Deep Red breeds, reflecting their common histories. A considerable amount of gene flow from Red Holstein to German Angler and to German Red and White Dual-Purpose was revealed, which is consistent with frequent crossbreeding to improve productivity of these local breeds. In Red Holstein, marked genomic signatures of selection were reported on chromosome 18, suggesting directed selection for important breeding goal traits. Furthermore, tests for signatures of selection between Red Holstein, Red and White Dual-Purpose, and Meuse-Rhine-Yssel uncovered signals for all investigated pairs of populations. The corresponding genomic regions, which were putatively under different selection pressures, harboured various genes which are associated with traits such as milk and beef production, mastitis and female fertility.ConclusionsThis study provides comprehensive knowledge on the genetic constitution and genomic connectedness of divergent red cattle populations in Northern Europe. The results will help to design and optimize breeding strategies. A joint genomic evaluation including some of the breeds studied here seems feasible.

Detecting flying insects using car nets and DNA metabarcoding.

Monitoring insects across space and time is challenging, due to their vast taxonomic and functional diversity. This study demonstrates how nets mounted on rooftops of cars (car nets) and DNA metabarcoding can be applied to sample flying insect richness and diversity across large spatial scales within a limited time period. During June 2018, 365 car net samples were collected by 151 volunteers during two daily time intervals on 218 routes in Denmark. Insect bulk samples were processed with a DNA metabarcoding protocol to estimate taxonomic composition, and the results were compared to known flying insect richness and occurrence data. Insect and hoverfly richness and diversity were assessed across biogeographic regions and dominant land cover types. We detected 15 out of 19 flying insect orders present in Denmark, with high proportions of especially Diptera compared to Danish estimates, and lower insect richness and diversity in urbanized areas. We detected 319 species not known for Denmark and 174 species assessed in the Danish Red List. Our results indicate that the methodology can assess the flying insect fauna at large spatial scales to a wide extent, but may be, like other methods, biased towards certain insect orders.

Abnormal Lactation Lengths and its Consequences on Performance of Crossbred Cattle

Background: The study was conducted to unravel the consequences of abnormal lactation lengths (Extremely short, short, prolong and extremely prolong lactation length) on production and reproduction traits of crossbred cattle (Red Dane x Sahiwal x Holstein Friesian), which otherwise remains unutilized in routine breeding data analysis owing to normalization and standardization of lactation lengths. Methods: The performance data of 2541 lactations of 1001 crossbred cattle, sired by 146 bulls over a period of 30 years maintained at the Livestock Farms of Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (GADVASU), Ludhiana were used for this study. The data on production and reproduction traits were analysed using general linear model procedures based on extremely short ( less than 102 days), short (102-179 days), prolong (483 - 560 days) and extremely prolong (≥ 560 days) lactation lengths on the basis of mean lactation length and its standard deviation. Result: Result indicated that the alteration of lactation lengths affected all important performance traits of crossbred cattle in contemporary as well as in next lactation. The values of 305 days milk yield, lactation milk yield, average fat (%), 305 days fat yield and lactation fat yield of contemporary lactation cycle were higher (P≤0.05) for the extremely prolong lactation length and reduced for shorter lactations. Similar trend was seen for next lactation cycle of the animal having abnormal lactation length in previous lactation cycle for all traits except calf birth weight, whereas days to reach peak yield and fat yield traits were not significantly affected by lactation length classes. The preferred lactation length for crossbred cattle for optimum performance was concluded as 180 to 483 days ranging one standard deviation from mean lactation length, covering more than 72% of population; however, it needs further studies to break it into groups in terms of productive life and economical merits. Farmers should avoid breeding of animal having extremely short and short lactation lengths, as their production and reproductive traits are lower in successive production cycle.

Factors influencing multiple ovulation in dairy cows from Latvian brown, Latvian blue, and Danish red breeds at risk in Latvia

The aim of this study was to determine the general factors that influence multiple ovulation (MO) in the donor cows from the breed Latvian Brown (LB), Latvian Blue (LBl), and Danish Red (DR) using a follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) or equine chorion gonadotropin (eCG). The 30 cows aged 2 to 15 years were selected for MO and embryo flushing (EF) from the database of the Agricultural Data Center of the Republic of Latvia, of which 13 were LB cows, 7 were LBl cows, and 10 were DR. Serum biochemistry parameters and serum progesterone (P4) concentrations were determined in the donor cows on the day of starting MO treatment (time point T1). Serum P4 detection was repeated at 4 additional time points: before injection of prostaglandin F2 alpha (PGF2α) (T2), on the days of the 1st and 2nd artificial insemination (AI) (T3 and T4), and the day of EF (T5). On the day of EF, ovaries were examined by ultrasonography, and the success of MO was assessed according to the number of corpora lutea (CL). On average, 7.7 (range 1 – 19) CL were found per cow. A successful response to the MO treatment (CL≥3) was observed in 24 cows (80%). The cows that failed to respond to MO treatment were equally distributed among cow breeds. The P4 concentration of the donor cows with a successful response to MO treatment was significantly higher than in cows without the response at T1, T2, and T5. The results of multivariable negative binomial regression showed that the number of CL was positively influenced by P4 level, phosphorus, and cholesterol concentration in the blood serum before MO treatment. It was concluded that cows from breeds LB, LBl, and DR at risk in Latvia effectively responded to MO treatment.

ANALYSIS OF COMPLEX GENOTYPES OF BETA- AND KAPPA CASEIN OF BULLS OF DAIRY BREEDS

Marker-dependent breeding is one of the most relevant areas for improving the dairy productivity of cattle. It allows the selection of parent forms at the gene level. The growing demands of the market for milk quality make it necessary to select dairy herds using genetic markers associated with qualitative characteristics of milk productivity. A topical issue in dairy cattle breeding today is the study of the relationship between hereditary factors that determine the types of proteins in milk. Casein is the main component of milk proteins and is represented by three fractions – alpha (CSN1S1), beta (CSN2) and kappa (CSN3). The content of individual casein fractions depends on the breed of cows. Genetic variants of beta-casein significantly affect human health, while kappa-casein is associated with the quality of milk and the greater suitability of milk for processing and cheese production.
 The aim of this work is to evaluate the genotype of sires approved for use in Ukrainian farms in 2020 based on beta- and kappa-casein genes.
 Materials and methods. The research was conducted by analyzing the catalog of bulls of dairy and dairy-meat breeds for breeding stock reproduction in 2020. Bulls were analyzed according to the genotype of beta – and kappa-casein of Holstein (n = 872), Simmental (n = 17), Montbellard (n = 3), (wro.synel.net; motbeliarde.org) Jersey (n = 59), Red Danish (n = 8), Red Norwegian (n = 7), Schwyz (n = 17), Aishir (n = 8) breeds, evaluated by offspring quality and genomic assessment. The website DairyBulls.com is used to analyze the results of the evaluation of bulls-producers on a set of characteristics. The research results were processed by mathematical statistics methods using the "Statistica-6.1" package in a Windows PC environment.
 It was found that the majority of bulls-producers approved for use were evaluated based on these genotypes. Depending on the breed, the number of bulls estimated by the studied characteristics ranged from 43 to 85%. Depending on the breed, from 2 to 16 different combinations of beta- and kappa-casein genotypes were identified. The frequency of occurrence of the desired complex genotype A2A2/BB, depending on the breed, was in the range of 0.0 to 75.0%. Holstein bulls of the desired A2A2/BB genotype were estimated to be superior to bulls of some other complex genotypes in terms of daughter milk yield, the amount of milk fat, milk protein, lifetime profit indices, cheese profit, and milk profit.
 Therefore, the use of sperm production of bulls with the A2A2/BB genotype will improve the economically useful characteristics of offspring, and will further increase the number of livestock with the desired complex genotype.
 Summary.
 1. Taking into account the data of many domestic and foreign scientists who claim that the genotype of animals by the beta – and kappa-casein polymorphism affects the qualitative composition of milk, it is necessary to have in herds the necessary number of animals carrying the A2 allele of beta-casein and the B allele of the kappa-casein gene. The desired breeding parameters of the herd can be achieved by using bulls with BB genotypes for kappa-casein and A2A2 for beta-casein. Correction of the bulls-producers selection system can only be carried out if the breeding stock of the herd is genotyped according to the polymorphism of the beta-and kappa – casein genotypes. Holding this event will increase the protein content and will improve cheese suitability of milk of cattle of future generations.
 The use of bulls-producers without taking into account their genotypes for the casein fractions described above and the lack of polymorphism control of these genes among cows can lead to a decrease in the frequency of desired genotypes in the herd and a decrease in the technological qualities of milk as raw materials.
 2. The created database of bulls-producers approved for use in Ukraine, evaluated by the beta-and kappa – casein genotypes, allows us to establish a positive perspective on the possibility of forming staffed herds of animals with the desired complex A2A2/BB genotype in Ukraine.
 3. It was found that bulls of dairy breeds have different frequencies of beta – and kappa casein alleles. The part of bulls-producers of the desired complex genotype A2A2/BB of Holstein breed is 8.49%, Holstein Red-pockmarked – 2.94%, Schwyz – 75%, Jersey – 13.79%, Red Danish – 12.5%, Red Norwegian – 20.0%, Montbellard – 25%. Among animals of Simmental and Aishir breeds – bulls with the desired complex genotype A2A2/BB were not detected.
 4. Bulls of the desired complex genotype A2A2/BB according to the indicators of milk yield of daughters, the amount of milk fat, milk protein, indices of lifetime profit, profit for cheese, profit for milk were dominated bulls with separate complex genotypes CSN2-CSN3

Comparison of bovine milk oligosaccharides in native North European cattle breeds

Milk oligosaccharides are of high interest due to their bioactive properties. This study is the first to characterise milk oligosaccharides from native North European cattle breeds, as represented by 80 milk samples collected from eight native breeds originated from Norway (Norwegian Doela cattle and Norwegian Telemark cattle), Sweden (Swedish Mountain cattle), Denmark (Danish Red anno 1970), Iceland (Icelandic cattle), Lithuania (native Lithuanian Black and White) and Finland (Western Finncattle and Eastern Finncattle). Using high-performance liquid-chromatography chip/quadrupole time-of-flight mass-spectrometry, 18 unique monosaccharide compositions and a multitude of isomers were identified. No N-glycolylneuraminic acid was identified among these breeds. Western Finncattle milk was most abundant in neutral, acidic and fucosylated oligosaccharides. Further, Eastern Finncattle milk was significantly higher in acidic oligosaccharides and Icelandic cattle milk significantly higher in fucosylated oligosaccharides, compared to the mean. This study highlights specific native breeds of particular interest for future exploitation of milk oligosaccharides and breeding strategies.

Short communication: Heterosis and breed effects for milk production and udder health traits in crosses between Danish Holstein, Danish Red, and Danish Jersey

During the last decade, the use of systematic crossbreeding in dairy cattle herds has increased in several countries of the world. The aim of this study was to estimate the effect of breed proportion and heterosis on milk production traits and udder health traits in dairy cattle. The study was based on records on milk yield (MY), protein yield (PY), fat yield (FY), somatic cell score (SCS), and mastitis (MAST) from 73,695 first-lactation dairy cows in 130 Danish herds applying systematic crossbreeding programs. Around 45% of the cows were crosses between Danish Holstein (DH), Danish Red (DR), or Danish Jersey (DJ), and the remaining were purebred DH, DR, or DJ. The statistical model included the fixed effects of herd-year, calving month, and calving age and an effect representing the lactation status of the cow. In addition, the model included a regression on calving interval from first to second lactation, a regression on the proportion of DH, DR, and DJ genes, and a regression on the degree of heterozygosity between DH and DR, DH and DJ, and DR and DJ. Random effects were the genetic effect of the cow and a residual. The effect of breed proportions was estimated relatively to DH. For MY, a pure DR yielded 461 kg milk less than DH, whereas a pure DJ yielded 2,259 kg milk less than a pure DH. Compared with DH, PY was 41.7 kg less for DJ, whereas PY for DR was 4.0 kg less than for DH. For FY, a DR yielded 10.6 kg less than DH, whereas there was no significant effect of breed proportion between DJ and DH. A DR cow had lower SCS (0.13) than DH, whereas DJ had higher SCS (0.14) than DH. There was no significant effect of breed proportion on MAST between the 3 breeds. Heterosis was significant in all combinations of breeds for MY, FY, and PY. Heterosis for crosses between DH and DR was 257 kg (3.2%), 11.9 kg (3.2%), and 8.9 kg (3.2%) for MY, PY, and FY, respectively. Corresponding figures for crosses between DH and DJ were 314 kg (4.4%), 14.3 kg (4.4%), and 10.4 kg (4.0%), whereas heterosis between DR and DJ was 462 kg (6.7%), 19.6 kg (6.7%), and 13.9 kg (5.4%) for MY, PY, and FY, respectively. Heterosis was only significant for SCS in the crosses between DH and DR. Heterosis effects for MAST were nonsignificant for all the crosses. The results obtained in this study demonstrate that in first lactation cows, there is a positive effect of heterosis on milk production traits, but limited effect on udder health traits.

Characteristics of the genetic structure of the β-casein gene of producers approved for use in Ukraine in 2020

The modern topical issue in dairy cattle breeding is the study of the relationship between hereditary factors that determine the types of proteins in milk. Casein is the main component of milk proteins and is represented by three fractions - alpha (CSN1S1), beta (CSN2) and capa (CSN3). The content of individual casein fractions depends on the breed of cows. Scientists point out some grand questions as for the promotion of milk proteins, like beta-casein, affecting on such disorders as type-1 diabetes, schizophrenia, autism and the sudden death of an infant. The economic component that will ensure the attractiveness of creating the dairy herds completed with animals of genotype A2 A2 is the higher price of raw milk in comparison with conventional milk. The aim of this work is to evaluate the genotype of bulls-producers by the beta-casein gene, which are allowed to be used in Ukrainian farms in 2020. It is established that the majority of such bulls-producers are evaluated by the genotype of betta-casein. The largest proportion of bulls with the desired A2A2 genotype was found in red Danish and red Norwegian bulls. A greater proportion of A1A1 genotypes are characterized by Holstein bulls of red-mottled color. The largest proportion of the desired A2 allele was found in bulls of red Danish, red Norwegian and Guernsay breeds. Producers of Holstein and Ayshire breeds were characterized by a smaller proportion of this allele. It was found that the use of sperm of bulls approved for use in 2020 with the A2A2 by β-casein genotype on the breeding stock of domestic breeds will improve the economically useful characteristics of offspring, and will contribute the desired genotype of cows. As a result of the analysis of the genotype of Holstein and Swiss breeds that were used in breeding farms of Sumy region over the past three years, we found that 38 Holstein bulls were used in breeding farms and in breeding plants, among which 11% were evaluated by the β-casein gene. Among 12 Shvits bulls that were used in farms of the region, only 42% were evaluated by the β-casein genotype. This confirms that the work with the formation of dairy herds completed with animals of genotype A2 A2 in Sumy region was not carried out. Key words: breed, bull, β-casein, genotype, allele, daughters milk productivity.

Towards a better understanding of breeding objectives and production performance of dairy cattle in sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract The aim of this study was to examine breeding objectives and the impact of production systems and breed types on dairy cattle performance in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). A total of 64 research studies published between 1980 and 2018 were used for qualitative analysis (qualitative synthesis) of farmers’, scientists’ and institutional dairy trait preferences. Meta-analysis was conducted to examine the production and reproduction performance of dairy cattle in smallholder and large-scale dairy production systems. Most data used were from smallholder farmers (60%), with the remainder from large-scale farms. Linear mixed-effect models were used to estimate marginal means of production and reproduction traits for different breed types in both production systems. Overall, the results showed that there was a higher emphasis on breeding for improved fertility, increased milk yield and disease resistance. Milk content (fat and protein percentages), temperament, body conformation and total milk cell count (a mastitis indicator) were rarely mentioned in published literature, mainly because of milk pricing policies being volume based. Frequency and multivariate analyses (cluster data analysis) for desirable animal traits suggested that multiple breeding objectives are needed, based on the perceived goals of different farmers and institutions towards genetic improvement for production, reproduction, disease resistance and functional and animal welfare traits. Regardless of the breed type, commercial large-scale farms had a higher milk yield (2857.0 ± 233.3) compared with smallholder dairy farms (2419.8 ± 617.39). Estimated marginal means for lactation milk yield of the three breed types Holstein-Friesian, non-Holstein-Friesian dairy breeds (Jersey, Guernsey, Red Dane, Brown Swiss and Ayrshire) and cross-breds ( Bos taurus x Bos indicus ) were 3148.5 ± 433.00, 2995.6 ± 456.36 and 1771.1 ± 328.52, respectively. Significantly shorter age at first calving and shorter calving intervals were observed in large-scale farms in comparison to smallholder farms ( p < 0.05). No significant differences were noted for age at first calving, calving interval, days open and number of services per conception between the breed types. In conclusion, the present study suggests that (i) improvement of dairy cattle has focused on reproduction, production and disease resistance traits, reflecting the breeding objectives of farmers, scientists and institutions involved in dairy production; (ii) genetics plays a large role in increased dairy productivity in SSA and (iii) future dairy research should emphasise on the interactions between improved feeding, disease control and genetics at a production level to inform profitable combinations of dairy traits.

Оценка экстерьера основных промеров телосложения телок в зависимости от их происхождения

The paper highlights the results of an analysis of the assessment of the main measurements of the heifers physique depending on their origin. Productive and breeding qualities of animals are determined by their exterior-constitutional type. Only well-developed, healthy animals are capable of high productivity and long-term use. And also constitutionally strong animals most fully correspond to the desired economic and biological indicators. Therefore, studies of the exterior of heifers of different breed combinations confirm that an increase in conditional blood count for the Red Danish and Angler breeds contributes to an improvement in the indicators of the exterior of the heifers towards a greater expression of the milky type of body structure, an increase in individual altitude and latitude measurements, the overall size and proportionality of the physique of animals. And the obtained results give grounds to assert that local heifers with 1/4 blood level in red Danish cattle significantly differ in the degree of development of linear measurements of the body structure from peers of the purebred and local group 3 / 4ES × 1/4 Ang. Keywords: exterior, body measurements, productive longevity, Angler breed, Danish red breed, conditional blood.

Genotyping more cows increases genetic gain and reduces rate of true inbreeding in a dairy cattle breeding scheme using female reproductive technologies

Both small dairy cattle populations and dairy cattle populations with a low level of linkage disequilibrium (LD) suffer from low reliability of genomic prediction. In this study, we investigated whether adding more genotyped cows to the reference population influences the rate of genetic gain and rate of inbreeding by affecting the reliability. A standard breeding program with a large reference population and high LD, which mimicked a breeding program for Danish Holstein population, was simulated as a reference. A Danish Jersey population with a small reference population and high LD and a Red Dairy Cattle population with a large reference population and low LD were also simulated. Two additional breeding programs were simulated for Danish Jersey and Red Dairy Cattle populations, where 2,000 additional genotyped cows were included in the population for genomic selection. All 5 simulated breeding programs were initiated by a founder population to generate LD resembling the real LD pattern, followed by a 20-yr conventional progeny-testing scheme with 1,000 or 10,000 genotyped progeny-tested bulls and a 10-yr genomic selection scheme with or without 2,000 additional genotyped cows. Evaluation criteria were annual monetary genetic gain and rate of true inbreeding. Our results showed that adding more genotyped cows to the reference in dairy cattle populations has the potential to increase genetic gain and reduce the rate of inbreeding, regardless of reference population size and level of LD. However, it is still not possible to reach the same genetic gain as in the simulated Danish Holstein population with either a small reference population or low LD. Our results also showed that in a small reference population with high LD, it is difficult to manage inbreeding because of lower accuracy compared with the simulated Danish Holstein population and a smaller number of relevant families to select from. Therefore, breeding strategies need to be chosen to match population size and structure. The rate of true inbreeding is always underestimated by pedigree inbreeding and even more in genomic breeding programs, indicating that some forms of genome-wide inbreeding, instead of pedigree-based inbreeding, should be used to monitor inbreeding when genomic selection is implemented.

Mineral and fatty acid composition of milk from native Jutland and Danish Red 1970 cattle breeds

ABSTRACTMineral and fatty acid composition in milk from two minor native dairy breeds in Denmark; Danish Red 1970 (RDM-1970) and Jutland cows were analyzed. Results showed that for most compositional traits breed only played a minor role, whereas management and feeding played a significant role. Biodynamic management and very low milk yield resulted in a very characteristic fatty acid composition and a strongly elevated n-3/n-6 ratio (ratio 0.9 compared to 0.3). For milk minerals, RDM-1970 had significantly higher contents of P, Mg, Mn, whereas milk from Jutland cows had significantly higher K content.

SOME BIOLOGICAL AND ECONOMIC VALUABLE FEATURES OF THE RED CATTLE OF DIFFERENT ORIGIN IN THE ALTAI TERRITORY

The paper characterizes 52 producers of red steppe, 49 - red Danish and 169 Angler bulls of “Barnaulskoye” enterprise in terms of erythrocyte antigen occurrence. The authors used 53 antiserums in order to determine erythrocytic antigens of 9 genetic systems. The highest frequency observed was F antigen frequency equal to 0.976-1.000. This gene was not observed in one servicing red steppe bull and four servicing Angler bulls. All red Danish bulls had F allele in a homo- or heterozygous state. The concentration of antigens A2, B2, O1, Y2, G’, Q’ (system B), C1, C2, E, R2, W, X2 (system C), H’ (system S) in the red bulls was high and equal to 0.249-0.592. The frequency of erythrocytic antigens B1, I1, P2, T1, T2, Y1, I’, D’, J2’, P1’, B” (B), R1 (C), J (J), S2, U and H” (S) was the lowest at 0-0.122. All 53 blood factors were observed in Angler cattle, but no antigens B1, P2, R1, U и B1, Y1, B” were observed in the red steppe and red Danish cattle. There are no significant differences observed in genetic similarity among three red breeds; the index of genetic similarity are 0.9211-0.9307, which indicates a high relationship among them. The highest number of ejaculates and native sperm was obtained from Angler servicing bulls, the excess over other breeds was 11.9-13.9 and 15.1-42.8%. Red steppe bulls were characterized by lowest amount of ejaculate and less bioproducts for cryopreservation were received from them. The total breeding efficiency of cows with red steppe bull sperm was 85.1%, the superiority over Danish and Angler red cattle was 7.1-11.5%.

Assessment of genome stability in various breeds of cattle.

Chromosomal instability is a type of genome instability involving changes in genetic information at the chromosomal level. The basic tests used to identify this form of instability are sister chromatid exchange (SCE) tests and identification of fragile sites (FS). SCE is the process by which sister chromatids become fragmented as a result of DNA strand breakage and reassembly, followed by exchange of these fragments. FS can be observed in the form of breaks, gaps or constrictions on chromosomes, which often result from multiple nucleotide repeats in DNA that are difficult to replicate. The research material was the peripheral blood of ten breeds of cattle raised in Poland, including four native breeds covered by a genetic resources conservation programme, i.e. Polish Red, Polish Red-and-White, White-Backed, and Polish Black-and-White, as well as Polish Holstein-Friesian, Simmental, Montbéliarde, Jersey, Limousine and Danish Red. Two tests were performed on chromosomes obtained from in vitro cultures: SCE and FS. The average frequency of SCE was 5.08 ± 1.31, while the incidence of FS was 3.45 ± 0.94. Differences in the incidence of SCE and FS were observed between breeds. The least damage was observed in the Polish Red and White-Backed breeds, and the most in Polish Holstein-Friesians. The most damage was observed in the interstitial part of the chromosomes. Age was shown to significantly affect the incidence of SCE and FS. Younger cows showed less damage than older ones (SCE: 4.84 ± 1.25; 5.34 ± 1.24; FS: 3.10 ± 0.88, 3.80 ± 0.92).

Semen quality and diversity of morphological sperm abnormalities in bulls: breed and strain effects

At present great attention is paid to studying genetic regulation of farm animal adaptations to environmental conditions. This problem is very important due to a wide expansion of highly productive cattle breeds created in Europe and North America. However, until the present no investigation of changing semen quality in bulls of imported breeds during their adaptations to environmental conditions of Western Siberia has been conducted. The aim of this study was to investigate semen quality peculiarities and the diversity of morphological sperm abnormalities in bulls of imported and local breeds kept in the environmental conditions of the southern part of Western Siberia. We determined sperm concentration, sperm count, and rate of sperm with progressive motility and percentage of morphologically normal spermatozoa. The rate of sperm abnormalities according to Blome’s classifcation was determined too. It was found that the mean values of sperm concentration, sperm motility and percentage of morphologically normal spermatozoa in the bulls investigated were similar to those in bulls kept in European countries. Inter­breed differences in these parameters were not found. However, bulls of the Red Danish, Angler, and Simmental breeds had a higher percentage of misshapen sperm head and pyriform sperm head than bulls of the Black­White breed. An inter­strain difference in sperm motility in bulls of the Black­White breed was observed. It was found that bulls of Reflection Sovereign 198998 strain had lover sperm motility than bulls of Wis Burke Ideal 1013415 strain. No inter­strain differences in sperm production, percentage of morphologically normal spermatozoa and rate of main sperm abnormalities were found. Thus, it has been found that the environmental conditions of the southern part of Western Siberia do not seriously affect the sperm production, sperm motility or percentage of morphologically normal spermatozoa in bulls. However, the increased rate of misshapen and pyriform sperm heads in the bulls of the foreign breeds points to a need to study sperm DNA fragmentation.

Colour variability of beef in young bulls from fifteen European breeds

SummaryThe objective of this study was to determine the variation of the colour of longissimus thoracis muscle within and among fifteen European cattle breeds reared under comparable management conditions. A total of 436 unrelated purebred young bulls from fifteen European breeds (Aberdeen Angus, Highland, Jersey, South Devon, Danish Red, Holstein, Simmental, Asturiana de las Montañas (also known as Casina), Asturiana de los Valles, Avileña‐Negra Ibérica, Pirenaica, Marchigiana, Piemontese, Charolais and Limousin) were reared in five experimental research centres in the United Kingdom, Denmark, Spain, Italy and France. The pH of M. longissimus thoracis was measured at 24 h and after 10 days of ageing and colour at 48 h and 10 days. Two generalised linear models, Pearson correlations and a hierarchical cluster analyses were carried out. Lean meat colour differed significantly between breeds, and these fifteen European breeds could be grouped according to four classes of commercial interest: ‘very bright and pale‐red’, ‘bright and pale’, ‘red’ and ‘dark and dull red’. These groups were partially related to body size and carcass traits, fatness and muscle development and structure, and were controlled by differences in gene expression within each breed.

Whole-genome SNP analysis elucidates the genetic structure of Russian cattle and its relationship with Eurasian taurine breeds

BackgroundThe origin of native and locally developed Russian cattle breeds is linked to the historical, social, cultural, and climatic features of the diverse geographical regions of Russia. In the present study, we investigated the population structure of nine Russian cattle breeds and their relations to the cattle breeds from around the world to elucidate their origin. Genotyping of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in Bestuzhev (n = 26), Russian Black-and-White (n = 21), Kalmyk (n = 14), Kholmogor (n = 25), Kostromsky (n = 20), Red Gorbatov (n = 23), Suksun (n = 20), Yakut (n = 25), and Yaroslavl cattle breeds (n = 21) was done using the Bovine SNP50 BeadChip. SNP profiles from an additional 70 breeds were included in the analysis as references.ResultsThe observed heterozygosity levels were quite similar in eight of the nine studied breeds (HO = 0.337–0.363) except for Yakut (Ho = 0.279). The inbreeding coefficients FIS ranged from -0.028 for Kalmyk to 0.036 for Russian Black-and-White and were comparable to those of the European breeds. The nine studied Russian breeds exhibited taurine ancestry along the C1 axis of the multidimensional scaling (MDS)-plot, but Yakut was clearly separated from the European taurine breeds on the C2 axis. Neighbor-Net and admixture analyses, discriminated three groups among the studied Russian breeds. Yakut and Kalmyk were assigned to a separate group because of their Turano-Mongolian origin. Russian Black-and-White, Kostromsky and Suksun showed transboundary European ancestry, which originated from the Holstein, Brown Swiss, and Danish Red breeds, respectively. The lowest level of introgression of transboundary breeds was recorded for the Kholmogor, Yaroslavl, Red Gorbatov and Bestuzhev breeds, which can be considered as an authentic genetic resource.ConclusionsWhole-genome SNP analysis revealed that Russian native and locally developed breeds have conserved authentic genetic patterns in spite of the considerable influence of Eurasian taurine cattle. In this paper, we provide fundamental genomic information that will contribute to the development of more accurate breed conservation programs and genetic improvement strategies.

Human-Mediated Introgression of Haplotypes in a Modern Dairy Cattle Breed.

Domestic animals can serve as model systems of adaptive introgression and their genomic signatures. In part, their usefulness as model systems is due to their well-known histories. Different breeding strategies such as introgression and artificial selection have generated numerous desirable phenotypes and superior performance in domestic animals. The modern Danish Red Dairy Cattle is studied as an example of an introgressed population. It originates from crossing the traditional Danish Red Dairy Cattle with the Holstein and Brown Swiss breeds, both known for high milk production. This crossing happened, among other things due to changes in the production system, to raise milk production and overall performance. The genomes of modern Danish Red Dairy Cattle are heavily influenced by regions introgressed from the Holstein and Brown Swiss breeds and under subsequent selection in the admixed population. The introgressed proportion of the genome was found to be highly variable across the genome. Haplotypes introgressed from Holstein and Brown Swiss contained or overlapped known genes affecting milk production, as well as protein and fat content (CD14, ZNF215, BCL2L12, and THRSP for Holstein origin and ITPR2, BCAT1, LAP3, and MED28 for Brown Swiss origin). Genomic regions with high introgression signals also contained genes and enriched QTL associated with calving traits, body confirmation, feed efficiency, carcass, and fertility traits. These introgressed signals with relative identity-by-descent scores larger than the median showing Holstein or Brown Swiss introgression are mostly significantly correlated with the corresponding test statistics from signatures of selection analyses in modern Danish Red Dairy Cattle. Meanwhile, the putative significant introgressed signals have a significant dependency with the putative significant signals from signatures of selection analyses. Artificial selection has played an important role in the genomic footprints of introgression in the genome of modern Danish Red Dairy Cattle. Our study on a modern cattle breed contributes to an understanding of genomic consequences of selective introgression by demonstrating the extent to which adaptive effects contribute to shape the specific genomic consequences of introgression.

Modeling homeorhetic trajectories of milk component yields, body composition and dry-matter intake in dairy cows: Influence of parity, milk production potential and breed

The control of nutrient partitioning is complex and affected by many factors, among them physiological state and production potential. Therefore, the current model aims to provide for dairy cows a dynamic framework to predict a consistent set of reference performance patterns (milk component yields, body composition change, dry-matter intake) sensitive to physiological status across a range of milk production potentials (within and between breeds). Flows and partition of net energy toward maintenance, growth, gestation, body reserves and milk components are described in the model. The structure of the model is characterized by two sub-models, a regulating sub-model of homeorhetic control which sets dynamic partitioning rules along the lactation, and an operating sub-model that translates this into animal performance. The regulating sub-model describes lactation as the result of three driving forces: (1) use of previously acquired resources through mobilization, (2) acquisition of new resources with a priority of partition towards milk and (3) subsequent use of resources towards body reserves gain. The dynamics of these three driving forces were adjusted separately for fat (milk and body), protein (milk and body) and lactose (milk). Milk yield is predicted from lactose and protein yields with an empirical equation developed from literature data. The model predicts desired dry-matter intake as an outcome of net energy requirements for a given dietary net energy content. The parameters controlling milk component yields and body composition changes were calibrated using two data sets in which the diet was the same for all animals. Weekly data from Holstein dairy cows was used to calibrate the model within-breed across milk production potentials. A second data set was used to evaluate the model and to calibrate it for breed differences (Holstein, Danish Red and Jersey) on the mobilization/reconstitution of body composition and on the yield of individual milk components. These calibrations showed that the model framework was able to adequately simulate milk yield, milk component yields, body composition changes and dry-matter intake throughout lactation for primiparous and multiparous cows differing in their production level.

Effect of Dairy Cow Crossbreeding on Selected Performance Traits and Quality of Milk in First Generation Crossbreds.

The effects of heterosis are opposite to the effects of inbreeding depression, and it extends the lifespan and use of animals as well as improves their fertility and health. The main goal of crossbreeding Holstein-Friesian cows with bulls of other dairy or combined breeds is to improve their performance traits. F1 cows tend to express better functional traits than Holstein (PHF) cows. Effect of heterosis was larger and gave better results when there was a greater genetic distance between the animals used for crossbreeding.