Genetic Resources

Genetic improvement of indigenous cattle breeds in Ethiopia: A systematic review of the Fogera cattle open nucleus breeding scheme

Assemu Tesfa — 2024-11-05

Fogera cattle are one of the valuable indigenous milk-type local breeds of Ethiopia, widely adapted to the area around Lake Tana in the Amhara region. The objective of this systematic review was to evaluate the performance of the Fogera cattle breed under an open nucleus breeding scheme. The review was done systematically by collecting published and unpublished data sources on the breed. The overall milk yield of the nucleus Fogera cattle herd was 2.26±0.794L/day. From the total herd, the top 10% and 25% of them produced daily milk yields of 3.31 and 2.87L, respectively, and some elite cows gave an average of 5.45±0.73L/day with a maximum yield of 8L/day. The predicted 305-day milk yield for the top 10% and 25% of the total herd was 883.64 and 772.83L, respectively. The average lactation milk yield and lactation length were reported to be 489±184L and 243±72.79 days, respectively. The respective heritability estimates for the aforementioned traits were 0.20±0.23 and 0.27±0.001. The birth and weaning weights (at 8 months of age) of village Fogera cattle born from community-based breeding programmes (CBBP) were 23.77±.21 and 85.89±1.07kg, respectively. The average weaning age for the CBBP herds was reduced to 8 months. The overall calf mortality in the nucleus herd was 3%. The CBBP demonstrated that it could act as a significant entry point for ensuring the conservation and restocking efforts of this breed as a country asset.

Quantifying phenotypic relationships among Arsi, Bale and Jemjem cattle breeds of Ethiopia

Amine Mustefa — 2024-10-01

Nine morphometric and 16 morphological traits were used to characterize and quantify phenotypic relationships among Arsi, Bale and Jemjem cattle breeds. A total of 441 randomly selected adult cattle (342 females and 99 males) from three purposively selected districts were used. Univariate and multivariate analysis procedures of statistical analysis software (SAS) were used to analyze the data. Clear morphological and morphometric variations were not observed among the cattle breeds. The majority of the studied cattle possessed uniform coat colour pattern (78%), black coat colour (61%), forward-oriented horns (65.8%), widely spaced horns (71.4%) and curved horns (76%). They mostly had erected humps (96.2%), small humps (66.7), mainly located at the cervicothoracic position (77.8%) with a straight face (100%) and back profile (92%) while their rump was sloppy (100%). Overall, 44.4% and 45.6% were medium- and long-tailed, respectively, while most (72.1%) of the cattle possessed medium dewlap width. Most (57.6%) of the males had medium perpetual sheaths while naval flap was not observed on most (53.2%) of their female counterparts. In addition to the univariate analysis, the multivariate analysis also failed to show significant separation among the breeds, as indicated by the short Mahalanobis distances and low eigenvalues. In conclusion, Arsi, Bale and Jemjem cattle breeds were found to be phenotypically inseparable. However, the observed phenotypic similarities among these breeds do not necessarily mean that these cattle breeds are genetically the same. Therefore, further molecular characterization is recommended to quantify the degree of genetic relationships among the studied breeds.

Brazil's implementation of access and benefit-sharing and the Nagoya Protocol: Analyzing some trends and positions in the ongoing debate

Eduardo Relly — 2024-10-10

Access and benefit-sharing (ABS) arising from the utilization of biodiversity’s genetic resources and traditional knowledge is the third objective of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Since its inception, some parties to the CBD have enacted ABS-national legislation and in 2014, the Nagoya Protocol came into force, providing a global standard among ABS systems. Given this, Brazil has been working to implement ABS since 2001, especially after the enactment of the national Biodiversity Law (Law 13.123/2015), which is the domestic law for the Nagoya Protocol implementation. This paper examines how the implementation of ABS and the Nagoya Protocol is viewed, discussed and debated by some stakeholders. Based on qualitative semi-structured interviews, press releases, public declarations, legislation and grey literature, the paper reveals that although ABS has faced strong criticism and delivered modest results, most stakeholders consider it strategic and important, especially in the face of the bioeconomy–biodiversity nexus. In general, positions on the implementation of ABS policies and the Nagoya Protocol in Brazil can be devised in the following categories: 1) acceptance and optimistic appreciation of ABS, 2) acceptance of ABS mechanisms but impending need for adjustments, 3) acceptance of ABS mechanisms as a ‘bad with it, worse without it’ scenario, and 4) rejection of ABS. Our research also shows that when it comes to ABS and providers of genetic resources, debates centred on the topic of biopiracy have declined, while debates characterized by compromise, institutionalization and the steering of ABS via the implementation process are on the rise.

Checklist and prioritization of crop wild relatives in Sudan and South Sudan

Ahmed Aldow — 2024-10-29

Crop wild relatives (CWR) encompass wild plant species or subspecies closely related to domesticated crops. This study presents the first comprehensive checklist and prioritized inventory of CWR for Sudan and South Sudan. Building on the regional CWR list for Northeast Africa, we identified 499 CWR taxa belonging to 44 families, with 90% of these being native species. The most prominently represented families were Poaceae (148), Fabaceace (72) and Convolvulaceae (43), while Panicum (32), Eragrostis (27), Ficus (24) and Pennisetum (20) were the most frequent genera. A prioritized inventory of 85 CWR taxa was developed based on three criteria: economic value, utilization potential and threat status. The prioritized CWR are predominately native (78%) and encompass 12 families dominated by Poaceae (38), followed by Solanaceae (9), Fabaceae (6) and Cucurbitaceae (6). Priority genera included 27, with Digitaria (17), Solanum (9) and Cucumis (5) emerging as key genera for conservation attention. This comprehensive national CWR inventory provides a crucial foundation for developing targeted conservation strategies in Sudan and South Sudan.

Genetic diversity and intraspecific mitochondrial DNA variations in the Georgian Mountain breed of Bos taurus reveal admixture, introgression and potential parallel vs. convergent evolution patterns

Givi Basiladze — 2024-09-10

This study elucidates the haplotype diversity and mechanisms of evolutionary divergence for a broad population of the Georgian Mountain breed (GMB) of Bos taurus, using the sequencing and analysis of its mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). In the evolutionary analyses, sequences of the targeted mtDNA region, involving the D-loop, CYTB, tRNA-Thr, and tRNA-Pro encoding genetic loci were analyzed using MEGA11, DnaSP, and SplitsTree software packages. A total of 25 haplotypes were determined among 82 individuals of GMB, belonging predominantly to the haplogroups T (T3, T1, T2, T4) or Q (Q1). Ten singleton haplotypes could also be determined in the GMB population. In the maximum likelihood evolutionary analysis, the singleton haplotype SNGT-9 appeared to be most closely related to the Bos indicus sub-haplogroup I1a. The haplotype diversity (0.997), nucleotide diversity (0.00636) and the overall mean distance within a population (0.01) calculated for GMB were greater as compared to the respective estimates (0.930, 0.00482 and 0.00) determined for its closest cattle relatives globally, suggesting stronger selection. It is suggested that the GMB diversity has been shaped by both parallel and convergent evolution, as well as by possible introgression, while pinpointing this breed’s ancient origin collectively.

Use of plant genetic resources in Yemen and suggestions for potential improvement

Maeen Aljarmouzi — 2024-09-27

The study aimed to determine the present state of the use of plant genetic resources in Yemen during the period 2007–2023 and to identify potential improvements, relying on historical descriptive information as well as on primary and secondary information sources, with a focus on the case of the National Genetic Resources Center. For genebank-conserved accessions, the study identified limited achievements, the most important being the characterization and evaluation of 1,100 accessions of different crops. Significant progress was also made with the initiation of hybridization research programmes for various crops. However, the study identified several gaps and obstacles hindering the use of plant genetic resources and concluded with recommended measures to address them with the ultimate goal of effectively and efficiently using plant genetic assets to improve food and agriculture security in the country. In this regard, projects such as the ‘Rainfed Agriculture and Livestock’ funded by the World Bank, are taking steps to promote on-farm conservation of landraces of cereals and food legumes, including the establishment of Seed Producers Associations in five governorates.

The EURISCO-EVA Information System, an innovative approach to the data management of multi-site crop evaluation data

Suman Kumar — 2024-11-13

This paper introduces EURISCO-EVA, an extension of the European Search Catalogue for Plant Genetic Resources (EURISCO) hosted at and maintained by IPK Gatersleben on behalf of the European Cooperative Programme for Plant Genetic Resources (ECPGR). This information system facilitates standardized data collection, sharing and analysis for plant genetic resources for food and agriculture (PGRFA) characterization and evaluation. In the framework of the European Evaluation Network (EVA), public–private partnerships aiming at the evaluation of crop accessions conserved in European genebanks, EURISCO-EVA provides a standardized data repository for multi-site evaluations of different crops. Through centralizing metadata maintenance, EURISCO-EVA ensures uniformity in trait definitions, experimental designs and passport data, promoting the efficient exchange of observed phenotypic data. EURISCO-EVA currently stores more than half a million phenotypic data points for 4,845 PGRFA accessions from 6 genera and 17 species, collected through 382 phenotypic experiments conducted at 115 experimental locations across 33 countries, involving 89 project partners. This platform offers a user-friendly web interface, empowering users with features such as map-based filtering of trial locations, statistical overviews and customizable reports. EURISCO-EVA’s robust administrative functionalities, coupled with standardization efforts, enhance data quality and harmonization, providing a robust and scalable system for storage of and access to crop evaluation data that could be further enhanced by adding analysis modules. EURISCO-EVA also formed the basis for the data management of two research projects (AGENT and INCREASE) under the EU Horizon 2020 funding programme, providing the background organization of complex datasets used to address future challenges in European agriculture.

Collecting Mediterranean wild species of the Brassica oleracea group (Brassica sect. Brassica)

Lorenzo Maggioni — 2024-07-29

Within the framework of the project EUBRASWILD (Capturing Brassica Wild Relatives Diversity in Southeastern Europe), several collecting missions were organized, targeting wild Brassica complex species (2n = 18), belonging to the gene pool of Brassica oleracea L. These crop wild relatives have repeatedly shown their potential to contain useful alleles for biotic and abiotic stress resistance, and nutritional or health-beneficial traits that can be easily intercrossed with the related crop. The missions described in this paper aimed to collect taxa that are poorly represented in public genebanks or databases for long-term conservation. This report describes missions carried out by national teams in Albania, Croatia and Italy (Ponza and Sicily), including highlights of newly discovered locations.

Genetics solutions for improved chicken production in Ghana

Richard Osei-Amponsah — 2024-11-11

The Tropical Poultry Genetics Solutions project intervention in Ghana, a collaboration between the International Livestock Research Institute and the University of Ghana, with support from Ghana’s Ministry of Food and Agriculture, seeks to test the adaptability, productivity and farmer preferences of tropically adapted improved dual-purpose chicken genotypes under different production systems. Poultry farmers from two agroecological zones in five of the 16 regions of Ghana were selected to participate in the project. These farmers were provided with selected tropically adapted chicken genotypes, namely Kuroiler and Hubbard, to manage under their production system, and data was collected on bird performance in terms of body weight, egg production, quality and overall acceptability by the farmers. The findings indicate a high farmer preference for, and significantly better (p ≤ 0.05) growth performance of the introduced chicken genotypes compared to local chickens. For instance, the introduced birds reached an average weight of 2kg within 18 weeks, compared to local chickens which required 30 weeks on average to reach 1.6kg under semi-intensive production management conditions. Additionally, the egg production and carcass attributes of these selected genotypes were found to be comparable to those of the local chickens. Based on these positive results, we recommend the multiplication and widespread adoption of Kuroiler and Hubbard chicken strains among smallholder farmers in Ghana. By doing so, we anticipate improved chicken production, increased income generation, enhanced livelihoods and protein food security in the country.

Genetic divergence study on growth, yield and quality traits in pink brinjal (Solanum melongena L.) in the subtropical plains of Jammu, India

Vishwash Bandhral — 2024-08-23

In 2022, field investigation was conducted to examine the genetic diversity among 30 pink brinjal (eggplant, Solanum melongena L.) genotypes originating from India. Mahalanobis D² analysis was performed to analyze the data for eighteen growth, yield and quality characters. Among the traits examined, the total fruit yield per plant made the most significant contribution towards diversity. Thirty genotypes were meaningfully grouped into eight clusters. Cluster I, the largest, had eight genotypes, followed by Cluster II and Cluster IV. There was no direct correlation observed between the geographical distribution and genetic divergence. Among all clusters formed, Cluster VII exhibited maximum intra-cluster distance followed by Cluster VI. Observing the inter-cluster distances, the maximum divergence was noted between Cluster III and Cluster IV suggesting that genotypes within these clusters could serve as valuable parents for hybridization programmes aimed at producing highly heterotic hybrids and identifying transgressive segregants in the F₂ generation.