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Genetics of disease resistance in Bos taurus cattle

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 August 2011

C.A. Morris
C.A. Morris
Affiliation:
AgResearch, Ruakura Agricultural Research Centre PB 3123, Hamilton, New Zealand
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Summary

This review summarises evidence for genetic variation of Bos taurus cattle to diseases encountered under temperate conditions, including internal and external parasitism, susceptibility to mycotoxic diseases (tall fescue toxicosis, facial eczema, ryegrass staggers), mastitis, ketosis, pasture bloat, leukosis, tuberculosis, foot and mouth, brucellosis and BSE. Averaging mean heritability estimates reviewed from 8 diseases (weighted equally) gave a value of 0.21, indicating that measurable genetic variation for disease traits in Bos taurus cattle is somewhat less than that for production traits, such as milk yield or body weight. Many estimates, however, have high standard errors, and there could be an upward bias resulting from non-reporting of zero or non-significant estimates.

Few single-trait selection experiments have been conducted to study the genetics of disease resistance traits in cattle. For the disease traits where selection is being applied extensively, index selection for improved disease resistance and increased production is more common than single-trait selection. Results from a long-term (25 year) divergent selection experiment with resistance/susceptibility to pasture bloat in cattle in New Zealand are reviewed. Four single-year experiments comparing progeny of ‘high’ versus ‘low’ sires for resistance to disease are also reviewed, one in Australia studying faecal nematode egg counts, one in the USA involving the mycotoxic disease, tall fescue toxicosis, a third in New Zealand involving the mycotoxic disease, facial eczema, and a fourth in the USA involving Brucella abortus.

Resumen

Esta revisión resume la variedad genética evidente en Bos taurus a las enfermedad encontradas en condiciones templadas, incluido el parasitismo interno y externo, la susceptibilidad a las enfermedades micotóxicas (festuca cañosa, excema facial, tetania del raygras), la mastitis, la cetosis, el timpanismo pratense, la leucosis, la tuberculosis, la brucelosis y la BSE. La media de heredabilidad estimada sobre 8 enfermedades nos da un valor de 0,21, lo que indica que la variación genética medible en cuanto a enfermedades en el caso de Bos taurus es algo inferior con respecto a la producción, tal como el rendimiento en leche o rendimiento corporal. Varias estimaciones poseen sin embargo una elevada desviación estándar, y puede haber una ulterior desviación debida a la omisión del zero o de las estimaciones no significativas.

Algunos experimentos sobre selección de rasgos simples han conducido llevado a estudiar la genética de los rasgos de resistencia a enfermedades en bovinos. Para los caracteres sobre enfermedades, a los que se aplica una selección extensiva, el Indice de selección para mejorar la resistencia a la enfermedad y aumentar la producción es más común que en el caso de la selección de un rasgo simple. Se analizan aquí los resultados obtenidos a largo plazo (25 años) y que muestran una divergencia entre el experimento de selección y la resistencia/susceptibilidad al timpanismo pratense en los bovinos de Nueva Zelanda. Quatro experimentos de un año comparan la descendencia de “arriba” hacia “abajo” de los machos en cuanto a la resistencia a enfermedades; uno en Australia realiza un conteo de las larvas de los nematodos fecales; uno en Estados Unidos sobre la enfermedad micotóxica, un tercero en Nueva Zelanda referido a enfermedad micotóxica y excema facial; y el cuarto en Estados Unidos sobre Brucella abortus.

Keywords

CattleBos taurusdiseaseresistancegenetics
Type
Research Articles
Information
Animal Genetic Resources/Resources génétiques animales/Recursos genéticos animales , Volume 23 , April 1998 , pp. 1 - 11
Copyright
Copyright © Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations 1998

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