Beef derived from Holstein steers is a significant source of the U.S. beef supply. The nation’s 9.1 million dairy cows in 2003 were 22% of the U.S. cow herd (NASS, 2005). Given the typical breed distribution of dairy cows, calving interval, full-term pregnancy rate, peri-natal calf death loss (NAHMS, 2002), gender distribution, dairy beef placement (80%) and survival to market (94%), it can be ...

Complex vertebral malformation (CVM) is a recently described monogenic autosomal recessive hereditary defect of Holstein dairy cattle that causes premature birth, aborted fetuses and stillborn calves. Guanine is substituted by thymine (G>T) in the solute carrier family 35 member A3 gene (SLC35A3). A valine is changed to a phenylalanine at position 180 of uridine 5'-diphosphate-N-acetyl-glu...

This investigation was conducted to identify polymorphism of the leptin gene in Holstein cows, Mazandarani native cattle and buffaloes by Polymerase Chain Reaction-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). The frequencies of A and B alleles were 0.4 and 0. 6 in Holstein cows, 0.56 and 0.44 in Mazandarani native cattle, 0.61 and 0.35 in buffaloes, respectively. The heterozygote genoty...

Intake and annual performance of Limousin × Holstein-Friesian and Simmental × Holstein-Friesian beef suckler cows, and pre-weaning growth of their calves Beef cross dairy heifers remain a significant source of replacement breeding stock for the suckler herd in Ireland. Previous studies at this centre have compared Hereford × Friesian beef suckler dams with Charolais × Friesian and Limousin × Fr...

We estimated the allele and genotype frequencies of IGF-I/SnaBI gene polymorphism and the concentration of this protein in Holstein dairy cows. We also examined the association with milk yield (305-day milk yield) and milk components (fat and protein percentage, and 305-day milk protein and fat yield). Blood IGF-I levels were measured and genotyping was performed on 250 Holstein cows of four di...

Polymorphism of the b-lactoglobulin (b-LG) gene in 101 cows belonging to the Holstein herd and a superior cow, producing more than 150 Kg milk/day, together with four offsprings was investigated by the Polymerase Chain Reaction-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method. In the Holstein herd, the alleles A and B of the b-LG gene had frequencies of 0.53 and 0.47, respectively. Th...

To analyze the resistance against Theileria sergenti infection in Holstein and Japanese Black cattle under field conditions, clinical, hematological and parasitological findings in these breeds of cattle that were grazed in the same pasture were examined during the grazing period. Holstein cattle showed a higher level of parasitemia than Japanese Black. With the progression of parasitemia, pack...

Genetic variability and relationships among six native French cattle breeds (Abondance, Tarentaise, Villard de Lans, Montbéliarde, Limousin, and Charolais) and one foreign breed (Holstein) were investigated using 23 microsatellite markers. These breeds were also compared with four Swiss breeds genotyped in a previously published study. Interestingly, the French alpine breeds have smaller popula...

We sequenced exon 2 of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II DRB3 gene from 471 individuals in four different Japanese populations of cattle (201 Japanese Black, 101 Holstein, 100 Japanese Shorthorn, and 69 Jersey cattle) using a new method for sequence-based typing (SBT). We identified the 34 previously reported alleles and four novel alleles. These alleles were 80.0-100.0% ident...

This study was conducted to determine a proper feeding regime for lactating Holstein cows during the warm season in Taiwan. In Feeding Trial, 21 lactating Holstein cows were randomly allotted into three feeding regimes in a Completely Randomized Design. The feeding regimes were roughage fed ad libitum along with concentrate fed either twice daily (2C) or four times daily (4C), and total mixed r...