Genetic evaluation of gestation length in Italian Holstein breed.

Autor: Galluzzo F; Associazione Nazionale Allevatori della Razza Frisona, Bruna e Jersey Italiana (ANAFIBJ), Cremona, Italy.; Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna, Ozzano dell'Emilia, Bologna, Italy., Visentin G; Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna, Ozzano dell'Emilia, Bologna, Italy., van Kaam JBCHM; Associazione Nazionale Allevatori della Razza Frisona, Bruna e Jersey Italiana (ANAFIBJ), Cremona, Italy., Finocchiaro R; Associazione Nazionale Allevatori della Razza Frisona, Bruna e Jersey Italiana (ANAFIBJ), Cremona, Italy., Biffani S; Istituto di Biologia e Biotecnologia Agraria, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Milan, Italy., Costa A; Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna, Ozzano dell'Emilia, Bologna, Italy., Marusi M; Associazione Nazionale Allevatori della Razza Frisona, Bruna e Jersey Italiana (ANAFIBJ), Cremona, Italy., Cassandro M; Associazione Nazionale Allevatori della Razza Frisona, Bruna e Jersey Italiana (ANAFIBJ), Cremona, Italy.; Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment, University of Padova, Legnaro, Padova, Italy.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Journal of animal breeding and genetics = Zeitschrift fur Tierzuchtung und Zuchtungsbiologie [J Anim Breed Genet] 2024 Mar; Vol. 141 (2), pp. 113-123. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Oct 11.
DOI: 10.1111/jbg.12828
Abstrakt: Gestation length (GL) can potentially affect health and performance of both the dam and the newborn calf, and it is controlled by two genetic components, direct and maternal. This means that both the calf (direct effect) and the cow (maternal effect) genotypes contribute to determine GL and its variability. The aims of the present study were to estimate direct and maternal variance components of GL, develop a routine genetic evaluation of GL in Italian Holstein and evaluate potential (un)favourable associations with traits for which selection is undertaken in this population. A multiple-trait repeatability linear animal model was employed for the estimation of variance components considering GL in first and later parities as different traits. The posterior mean (PM) of heritability of the direct effect was 0.43 for first parity and 0.35 for later parities. The PM of heritability of the maternal effect was lower, being 0.08 for primiparae and 0.06 for pluriparae. The posterior standard deviation (PSD) of the heritability estimates was small, ranging from 0.001 to 0.005. The relationship of direct and maternal effects with important traits such as milk yield and fertility indicated that selecting for extreme GL, longer or shorter, may have negative consequences on several traits, suggesting that GL has an intermediate optimum in dairy cattle. In conclusion, this study reveals that selecting an intermediate GL in the Italian Holstein population is advisable. Although scarcely variable compared to other conventional traits for which Italian Holstein is selected, GL is heritable and a deeper knowledge can be useful for decision-making at the farm level.
(© 2023 The Authors. Journal of Animal Breeding and Genetics published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
Externí odkaz: