Course Description
Genetics and statistics as related to the genetic improvement of farm animals.
Athena Title
INTRO GEN LVSTK IMP
Prerequisite
ADSC 2010 and BIOL 1107-1107L
Semester Course Offered
Offered fall
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
The objective of the course is to provide students an understanding of the underlying principles upon which current livestock genetic improvement is based. The course syllabus is a general plan for the course; deviations announced to the class by the instructor may be necessary.
Topical Outline
A. INTRODUCTION 1. Matching genetic resources to the management system 2. Historical development of animal breeding 3. Sources and methods of genetic improvement B. GENETICS OF POPULATIONS 1. Review of Mendelian inheritance 2. Testing for deleterious alleles 3. Gene frequency and population genetics 4. Forces that change gene frequency C. MEASUREMENT OF QUANTITATIVE VARIATION 1. Simple statistics a. Mean or average b. Variance, standard deviation, standard error c. Correlation d. Regression 2. Partitioning quantitative variation into its causal components a. Genetic causes of variability (1) additive, dominance, epistasis b. Environmental causes of variability c. Heritability D. GENETIC PROGRESS THROUGH SELECTION 1. Response to selection a. Heritability b. Selection differential 2. Breeding value (BV) prediction a. BV predicted from single record b. BV predicted from repeated records (repeatability) c. BV predicted from progeny records 3. Prediction of BV on a National Basis a. Sources of information b. Contemporary group formation c. Data correction factors 4. Correlations between traits 5. Selection methods and aids to selection E. SYSTEMS OF MATING 1. Inbreeding 2. Outbreeding a. Heterosis and systems of crossbreeding F. BIOTECHNOLOGY AND ANIMAL BREEDING 1. Reproductive technologies a. AI b. ET c. Sex control d. Cloning 2. Molecular technologies a. DNA fingerprinting b. Marker Assisted Selection c. Gene transfer (transgenics)
Syllabus