BACKGROUND During the past decades, neutral DNA markers have been extensively employed to study demography, population genetics and structure in livestock, but less interest has been devoted to the evaluation of livestock adaptive potential through the identification of genomic regions likely to be under natural selection. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Landscape genomics can greatly benefit ...

The role indigenous livestock can play in Africa’s Livestock Revolution is not always recognized. In many parts of Africa pure breeding with indigenous breeds is the only viable production strategy because of adverse climatic and nutritional conditions. However, there are scenarios where the higher demands of exotic breeds and their cross-breds can be met. This article discusses the possibility...

At least 150 indigenous African cattle breeds have been named, but the majority of African cattle populations remain largely uncharacterized. As cattle breeds and populations in Africa adapted to various local environmental conditions, they acquired unique features. We know now that the history of African cattle was particularly complex and while several of its episodes remain debated, there is...

An epidemiological survey, accompanied by a serological analysis,was conducted on samples taken from Lebanese goat herds in order to determine the prevalence of infection with the caprine arthritis encephalitis virus (CAEV) in Lebanon. The results of the survey provided information on various livestock production, animal health and herd management factors. Serum samplesfrom 952 goats, including...

In order to protect the interest of all stake holders of livestock farming in India, it is necessary to protect innovations in livestock sector through appropriate IP instruments along with conservation and sustainable use of native livestock breeds and associated traditional knowledge through sui generis system in the modern IPR regime. The unique attributes of indigenous livestock breeds coul...

We have reviewed the current pig (Sus scrofa) genomic diversity within and between sites and compared them with human and other livestock. The current Porcine 60K single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) panel has an average SNP distance in a range of 30 - 40 kb. Most of genetic variation was distributed within populations, and only a small proportion of them existed between populations. The averag...

Domestication of livestock species and a long history of migrations, selection and adaptation have created an enormous variety of breeds. Conservation of these genetic resources relies on demographic characterization, recording of production environments and effective data management. In addition, molecular genetic studies allow a comparison of genetic diversity within and across breeds and a r...

With the continuous increase of world population, intensified industrial activities, and aggravating environmental pollution, biodiversity is severely endangered to an unprecedented extent. Animal resources, a basis of agriculture and the whole society closely related to living and production, supply human beings with meat, eggs, milk, furs, medicinal materials, products for athletic and orname...

Over the centuries since mankind first started farming, genetic variation has allowed the selection of the improved crops and livestock that have fed an ever increasing population. Maintaining genetic variation is crucial if we want to continue to improve our livestock and respond to changes in climate, disease or consumer preferences. This article describes work at the Roslin Institute on the ...