Demographic and genetic structure of Alentejana cattle breed

Authors

  • Francisco Rodrigues Escola Superior Agrária - Instituto Politécnico de Santarém
  • António Vicente Escola Superior Agrária - Instituto Politécnico de Santarém https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3869-5509
  • Pedro Espadinha
  • Nuno Carolino Unidade Estratégica de Investigação e Serviços de Biotecnologia e Recursos Genéticos, INIAV https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9079-7380

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25746/ruiips.v9.i3.26199

Keywords:

ancestors, founders, genetic diversity, inbreeding, pedigree

Abstract

Demographic characterisation allows preventing the erosion of animal genetic diversity and using, in a sustainable way, the genetic resources, outlining conservation/improvement strategies. This work was based on demographic indicators of genetic diversity of the Alentejana cattle breed, evaluated by pedigree analysis, analysing factors affecting genetic erosion, based on the Herdbook (LG), since 1990. Currently the LG includes 21746 breeding females and 211 bulls, representing one of the Portuguese indigenous cattle breeds with the largest herd. The average generation interval was 6,01 years, the inbreeding rate/year, between 1990-2020, was 0,139%, and the effective population size was 59,90. Since 2007 inbreeding levels have increased. This may be due to mating between related animals and because of a small number of sires having large offspring. The estimate for the effective number of founders (fe) was 84,94, however, only 34 founders explain more than 50% of the genetic variability. Since 2000, the ratio between fe and the effective number of ancestors (fa) indicates a trend towards a bottleneck in the breed.

The situation of the Alentejana breed is not very concerning, but the results suggest the implementation of an effective management programme, ensuring the maintenance of the existing genetic variability.

Capa: Estrutura demográfica e genética da raça bovina Alentejana

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Published

2021-12-31

How to Cite

Rodrigues, F., Vicente, A. ., Espadinha, P. ., & Carolino, N. . (2021). Demographic and genetic structure of Alentejana cattle breed. Revista Da UI_IPSantarém, 9(3), 13–32. https://doi.org/10.25746/ruiips.v9.i3.26199

Issue

Vol. 9 No. 3 (2021): Edição Temática: Ciências Naturais e do Ambiente

Section

Papers

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