Genetic Evaluations of Stillbirth for Five United States Dairy Breeds: A Data-Resource Feasibility Study
Genetic selection has been an effective strategy to improve calving traits including stillbirth in dairy cattle. The primary objectives of the present study were to characterize stillbirth data and determine the feasibility of implementing routine genetic evaluations of stillbirth in five non-Holste...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2022-04-01
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Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fgene.2022.819678/full |
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author | Anil Sigdel Anil Sigdel Xiao-Lin Wu Xiao-Lin Wu Kristen L. Parker Gaddis H. Duane Norman José A. Carrillo Javier Burchard Francisco Peñagaricano João Dürr |
author_facet | Anil Sigdel Anil Sigdel Xiao-Lin Wu Xiao-Lin Wu Kristen L. Parker Gaddis H. Duane Norman José A. Carrillo Javier Burchard Francisco Peñagaricano João Dürr |
author_sort | Anil Sigdel |
collection | DOAJ |
description | Genetic selection has been an effective strategy to improve calving traits including stillbirth in dairy cattle. The primary objectives of the present study were to characterize stillbirth data and determine the feasibility of implementing routine genetic evaluations of stillbirth in five non-Holstein dairy breeds, namely Ayrshire, Guernsey, Milking Shorthorn, Brown Swiss, and Jersey. An updated sire-maternal grandsire threshold model was used to estimate genetic parameters and genetic values for stillbirth. Stillbirth data with the birth years of dams from 1995 to 2018 were extracted from the United States national calving ease database maintained by the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding. The extracted stillbirth records varied drastically among the five dairy breeds. There were approximately 486K stillbirth records for Jersey and more than 80K stillbirth records for Brown Swiss. The direct and maternal heritability estimates of stillbirth were 6.0% (4.5–7.6%) and 4.7% (3.3–6.1%) in Jersey and 6.8% (3.2–10.5%) and 1.1% (0.6–2.9%) in Brown Swiss. The estimated genetic correlations between direct and maternal genetic effects for stillbirth were −0.15 (−0.38 to −0.08) in Jersey and −0.35 (−0.47 to −0.12) in Brown Swiss. The estimated genetic parameters for stillbirth in these two breeds were within close ranges of previous studies. The reliabilities of predicted transmitting abilities in Jersey and Brown Swiss increased substantially, thanks to the substantial increase in available stillbirth data in the past 10 years. The stillbirth records for Ayrshire, Guernsey, and Milking Shorthorn, which ranged approximately between 3K and 12K, are insufficient to implement reliable routine genetic evaluations of stillbirth in these three dairy breeds. Estimated genetic (co)variances and genetic values deviated considerably from the reported ranges of previous studies, and the reliabilities of predicted transmitting abilities were low in these three breeds. In conclusion, routine genetic evaluations of stillbirth are feasible in Brown Swiss and Jersey. However, reliable genetic evaluations of stillbirth in Ayrshire, Guernsey, and Milking Shorthorn require further data collection on stillbirth. |
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spelling | doaj.art-db3664dcfcf24b5891ece1d6009496272022-12-22T03:14:08ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Genetics1664-80212022-04-011310.3389/fgene.2022.819678819678Genetic Evaluations of Stillbirth for Five United States Dairy Breeds: A Data-Resource Feasibility StudyAnil Sigdel0Anil Sigdel1Xiao-Lin Wu2Xiao-Lin Wu3Kristen L. Parker Gaddis4H. Duane Norman5José A. Carrillo6Javier Burchard7Francisco Peñagaricano8João Dürr9Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding, Bowie, MD, United StatesDepartment of Animal and Dairy Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United StatesCouncil on Dairy Cattle Breeding, Bowie, MD, United StatesDepartment of Animal and Dairy Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United StatesCouncil on Dairy Cattle Breeding, Bowie, MD, United StatesCouncil on Dairy Cattle Breeding, Bowie, MD, United StatesCouncil on Dairy Cattle Breeding, Bowie, MD, United StatesCouncil on Dairy Cattle Breeding, Bowie, MD, United StatesDepartment of Animal and Dairy Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United StatesCouncil on Dairy Cattle Breeding, Bowie, MD, United StatesGenetic selection has been an effective strategy to improve calving traits including stillbirth in dairy cattle. The primary objectives of the present study were to characterize stillbirth data and determine the feasibility of implementing routine genetic evaluations of stillbirth in five non-Holstein dairy breeds, namely Ayrshire, Guernsey, Milking Shorthorn, Brown Swiss, and Jersey. An updated sire-maternal grandsire threshold model was used to estimate genetic parameters and genetic values for stillbirth. Stillbirth data with the birth years of dams from 1995 to 2018 were extracted from the United States national calving ease database maintained by the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding. The extracted stillbirth records varied drastically among the five dairy breeds. There were approximately 486K stillbirth records for Jersey and more than 80K stillbirth records for Brown Swiss. The direct and maternal heritability estimates of stillbirth were 6.0% (4.5–7.6%) and 4.7% (3.3–6.1%) in Jersey and 6.8% (3.2–10.5%) and 1.1% (0.6–2.9%) in Brown Swiss. The estimated genetic correlations between direct and maternal genetic effects for stillbirth were −0.15 (−0.38 to −0.08) in Jersey and −0.35 (−0.47 to −0.12) in Brown Swiss. The estimated genetic parameters for stillbirth in these two breeds were within close ranges of previous studies. The reliabilities of predicted transmitting abilities in Jersey and Brown Swiss increased substantially, thanks to the substantial increase in available stillbirth data in the past 10 years. The stillbirth records for Ayrshire, Guernsey, and Milking Shorthorn, which ranged approximately between 3K and 12K, are insufficient to implement reliable routine genetic evaluations of stillbirth in these three dairy breeds. Estimated genetic (co)variances and genetic values deviated considerably from the reported ranges of previous studies, and the reliabilities of predicted transmitting abilities were low in these three breeds. In conclusion, routine genetic evaluations of stillbirth are feasible in Brown Swiss and Jersey. However, reliable genetic evaluations of stillbirth in Ayrshire, Guernsey, and Milking Shorthorn require further data collection on stillbirth.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fgene.2022.819678/fulldairy cattlecalving easematernal effectspredicted transmitting abilityreliability |
spellingShingle | Anil Sigdel Anil Sigdel Xiao-Lin Wu Xiao-Lin Wu Kristen L. Parker Gaddis H. Duane Norman José A. Carrillo Javier Burchard Francisco Peñagaricano João Dürr Genetic Evaluations of Stillbirth for Five United States Dairy Breeds: A Data-Resource Feasibility Study Frontiers in Genetics dairy cattle calving ease maternal effects predicted transmitting ability reliability |
title | Genetic Evaluations of Stillbirth for Five United States Dairy Breeds: A Data-Resource Feasibility Study |
title_full | Genetic Evaluations of Stillbirth for Five United States Dairy Breeds: A Data-Resource Feasibility Study |
title_fullStr | Genetic Evaluations of Stillbirth for Five United States Dairy Breeds: A Data-Resource Feasibility Study |
title_full_unstemmed | Genetic Evaluations of Stillbirth for Five United States Dairy Breeds: A Data-Resource Feasibility Study |
title_short | Genetic Evaluations of Stillbirth for Five United States Dairy Breeds: A Data-Resource Feasibility Study |
title_sort | genetic evaluations of stillbirth for five united states dairy breeds a data resource feasibility study |
topic | dairy cattle calving ease maternal effects predicted transmitting ability reliability |
url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fgene.2022.819678/full |
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