Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-j824f Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-18T22:17:21.480Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Genetic relationship between growth and reproductive traits in Nellore cattle

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 October 2011

M. L. Santana Jr ,
J. P. Eler ,
J. B. S. Ferraz  and
E. C. Mattos
M. L. Santana Jr*
Affiliation:
Grupo de Melhoramento Animal e Biotecnologia, Faculdade de Zootecnia e Engenharia de Alimentos, Universidade de São Paulo, C. Postal 23, CEP 13635-970 Pirassununga, São Paulo, Brazil Instituto de Ciências Agrárias e Tecnológicas, Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso – Campus Universitário de Rondonópolis, MT-270, Km 06, CEP 78735-901 Rondonópolis, MT, Brazil
J. P. Eler
Affiliation:
Grupo de Melhoramento Animal e Biotecnologia, Faculdade de Zootecnia e Engenharia de Alimentos, Universidade de São Paulo, C. Postal 23, CEP 13635-970 Pirassununga, São Paulo, Brazil
J. B. S. Ferraz
Affiliation:
Grupo de Melhoramento Animal e Biotecnologia, Faculdade de Zootecnia e Engenharia de Alimentos, Universidade de São Paulo, C. Postal 23, CEP 13635-970 Pirassununga, São Paulo, Brazil
E. C. Mattos
Affiliation:
Grupo de Melhoramento Animal e Biotecnologia, Faculdade de Zootecnia e Engenharia de Alimentos, Universidade de São Paulo, C. Postal 23, CEP 13635-970 Pirassununga, São Paulo, Brazil
*
†E-mail: [email protected]
Get access

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the genetic relationship between postweaning weight gain (PWG), heifer pregnancy (HP), scrotal circumference (SC) at 18 months of age, stayability at 6 years of age (STAY) and finishing visual score at 18 months of age (PREC), and to determine the potential of these traits as selection criteria for the genetic improvement of growth and reproduction in Nellore cattle. The HP was defined as the observation that a heifer conceived and remained pregnant, which was assessed by rectal palpation at 60 days. The STAY was defined as whether or not a cow calved every year up to the age of 6 years, given that she was provided the opportunity to breed. The Bayesian linear-threshold analysis via the Gibbs sampler was used to estimate the variance and covariance components applying a multitrait model. Posterior mean estimates of direct heritability were 0.15 ± 0.00, 0.42 ± 0.02, 0.49 ± 0.01, 0.11 ± 0.01 and 0.19 ± 0.00 for PWG, HP, SC, STAY and PREC, respectively. The genetic correlations between traits ranged from 0.17 to 0.62. The traits studied generally have potential for use as selection criteria in genetic breeding programs. The genetic correlations between all traits show that selection for one of these traits does not imply the loss of the others.

Keywords

beef cattlegenetic parameterslongevitypostweaning gainsexual precocity
Type
Full Paper
Information
animal , Volume 6 , Issue 4 , April 2012 , pp. 565 - 570
Copyright
Copyright © The Animal Consortium 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Archer, JA, Arthur, PF, Parnell, PF, Van de Ven, RJ 1998. Effect of divergent selection for yearling growth rate on female reproductive performance in Angus cattle. Livestock Production Science 57, 33–40.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Boligon, AA, Rorato, PRN, Albuquerque, LG 2007. Genetic correlations between male scrotal circumference and female productive and reproductive traits in Nellore cattle. Brazilian Journal of Animal Science 36, 565–571.Google Scholar
Bourdon, RM, Brinks, JS 1982. Genetic, environmental and phenotypic relationships among gestation length, birth weight, growth traits and age at first. Journal of Animal Science 55, 543–553.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bourdon, RM, Brinks, JS 1986. Scrotal circumference in yearling Hereford bulls: adjustment factors, heritabilities and genetic, environmental and phenotypic relationships with growth traits. Journal of Animal Science 62, 958–967.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Brinks, JS, Mclnerney, MJ, Chenoweth, PJ 1978. Relationship of age at puberty in heifers to reproductive traits in young bulls. Proceedings, Western Section, American Society of Animal Science, p. 28.Google Scholar
Buzanskas, ME, Grossi, DA, Baldi, F, Barrozo, D, Silva, LOC, Torres Júnior, RAA 2010. Genetic associations between stayability and reproductive and growth traits in Canchim beef cattle. Livestock Production Science 132, 107–112.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carlin, BP, Louis, TA 2000. Bayes and empirical bayes methods for data analysis. Chapman & Hall, London.Google Scholar
Doyle, SP, Green, RD, Golden, BL, Mathiews, GL, Comstock, CR, LeFever, DG 1996. Genetic parameter estimates for heifer pregnancy rate and subsequent rebreeding rate in Angus cattle. Journal of Animal Science 74 (suppl. 1), 117 (Abstr.).Google Scholar
Eler, JP, Ferraz, JBS, Silva, PR 1996. Parâmetros genéticos para peso, avaliação visual e circunferência escrotal na raça Nelore estimados por modelo animal. Arquivo Brasileiro de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia 48, 203–213.Google Scholar
Eler, JP, Ferraz, JBS, Golden, BL, Pereira, E 2000. Influence of sire × herd interaction on the estimation of correlation between direct and maternal genetic effects in Nellore cattle. Brazilian Journal of Animal Science 29, 1642–1648.Google Scholar
Eler, JP, Ferraz, JBS, Balieiro, JCC, Mattos, EC, Mourão, GB 2006. Genetic correlation between heifer pregnancy and scrotal circumference measured at 15 and 18 months of age in Nellore cattle. Genetics and Molecular Research 5, 569–580.Google ScholarPubMed
Eler, JP, Silva, JAIV, Evans, JL, Ferraz, JBS, Dias, F, Golden, BL 2004. Additive genetic relationships between heifer pregnancy and scrotal circumference in Nellore cattle. Journal of Animal Science 82, 2519–2527.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Eler, JP, Silva, JAIV, Ferraz, JBS, Dias, F, Oliveira, HN, Evans, JL, Golden, BL 2002. Genetic evaluation of the probability of pregnancy at 14 months for Nellore heifers. Journal of Animal Science 80, 951–954.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Evans, JL, Golden, BL, Bourdon, RM, Long, KL 1999. Additive genetic relationships between heifer pregnancy and scrotal circumference in Hereford cattle. Journal of Animal Science 77, 2621–2628.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hall, JB, Staigmiller, RB, Bellows, RA, Short, RE, Moseley, WM, Bellows, SE 1995. Body composition and metabolic profiles associated with puberty in beef heifers. Journal of Animal Science 73, 3409–3420.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Harville, DA, Mee, RW 1984. A mixed-model procedure for analyzing ordered categorical data. Biometrics 40, 393–408.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hudson, GFS, Van Vleck, LD 1981. Relationship between production and stayability in Holstein cattle. Journal of Dairy Science 64, 2246–2250.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
MacNeil, MD, Cundiff, LV, Dinkel, CA, Koch, RM 1984. Genetic correlations among sex-limited traits in beef cattle. Journal of Animal Science 58, 1171–1180.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Marcondes, CR, Bergmann, JAG, Eler, JP, Ferraz, JBS, Pereira, JCC, Penna, VM 2000. Analysis of some selection criteria for growth traits in Nellore cattle. Arquivo Brasileiro de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia 52, 83–89.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Martin, LC, Brinks, JS, Bourdon, RM, Cundiff, LV 1992. Genetic effects on beef heifer puberty and subsequent reproduction. Journal of Animal Science 70, 4006–4017.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Martínez-Velázquez, G, Gregory, KE, Bennett, GL, Van Vleck, LD 2003. Genetic relationships between scrotal circumference and female reproductive traits. Journal of Animal Science 81, 395–401.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mercadante, MEZ, Packer, IU, Razook, AG, Cyrillo, JNSG, Figueiredo, LA 2003. Direct and correlated responses to selection for yearling weight on reproductive performance of Nellore cows. Journal of Animal Science 81, 376–384.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Misztal, I, Tsuruta, S, Strabel, T, Auvray, B, Druet, T, Lee, DH 2002. Blupf90 and related programs. Proceedings of the 7th World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production, pp. 19–23. Montpellier, France.Google Scholar
Moser, DW, Bertrand, JK, Benyshek, LL, McCann, MA, Kiser, TE 1996. Effects of selection for scrotal circumference in Limousin bulls on reproductive and growth traits of progeny. Journal of Animal Science 74, 2052–2057.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nieto, LM, Silva, LOC, Marcondes, CR, Rosa, AN, Martins, EN, Torres Júnior, RAA 2007. Heritability for stayability in Canchim beef cattle breed. Pesquisa Agropecuária Brasileira 42, 1407–1411.Google Scholar
Pereira, E, Eler, JP, Ferraz, JBS 2001. Genetic analysis of some reproductive traits and their relationships with weight traits in Nellore cattle. Arquivo Brasileiro de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia 53, 720–727.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schaeffer, L, Calus, M, Liu, X 2001. Genetic evaluation of conformation traits using random contemporary groups and reducing the influence of parent averages. Livestock Production Science 69, 129–137.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shiotsuki, L, Silva, JAIV, Tonhati, H, Albuquerque, LG 2009. Genetic associations of sexual precocity with growth traits and visual scores of conformation, finishing, and muscling in Nellore cattle. Journal of Animal Science 87, 1591–1597.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Silva, JAIV, Eler, JP, Ferraz, JBS, Oliveira, HN 2003. Genetic analysis of stayability among Nellore females. Brazilian Journal of Animal Science 32, 598–604.Google Scholar
Silva, JAIV, Formigoni, IB, Eler, JP, Ferraz, JBS 2006. Genetic relationship among staybility, scrotal circumference and post-weaning weight in Nellore cattle. Livestock Production Science 99, 51–59.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, BJ 2005. Bayesian output analysis program (BOA) for MCMC. Retrieved November 26, 2009, from http://www.public-health.uiowa.edu/boa/boa.Google Scholar
Smith, BA, Brinks, JS, Richardson, GV 1989. Relationships of sire scrotal circumference to offspring reproduction and growth. Journal of Animal Science 67, 2881–2885.Google ScholarPubMed
Snelling, WM, Golden, BL, Bourdon, RM 1995. Within herd genetic analyses of stayability of beef females. Journal of Animal Science 73, 993–1001.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sorensen, DA, Andersen, S, Gianola, D, Korsgaard, I 2005. Bayesian inference in threshold models using Gibbs sampling. Genetics Selection Evolution 27, 229–249.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Strandén, I, Vuori, K 2006. RelaX2: pedigree analysis program. Proceedings of the 8th World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production, pp. 27–30. Belo Horizonte, MG, Brasil.Google Scholar
Toelle, VD, Robson, OW 1985. Estimates of genetic correlations between testicular measurements and female reproductive traits in cattle. Journal of Animal Science 60, 89–100.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Van Melis, MH, Eler, JP, Silva, JAIV, Ferraz, JBS 2003. Estimate of genetic parameters in beef cattle using restricted maximun likelihood and method R. Brazilian Journal of Animal Science 32, 1624–1632.Google Scholar
Van Melis, MH, Eler, JP, Oliveira, HN, Rosa, GJM, Silva, JAIV, Ferraz, JBS, Pereira, E 2007. Study of stayability in Nellore cows using a threshold model. Journal of Animal Science 85, 1780–1786.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Van Melis, MH, Eler, JP, Rosa, GJM, Ferraz, JBS, Figueiredo, LGG, Mattos, EC, Oliveira, HN 2010. Additive genetic relationships between scrotal circumference, heifer pregnancy, and stayability in Nellore cattle. Journal of Animal Science 88, 3809–3813.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed