Publications by authors named "F A Schenkel"
Article Synopsis
- This study examines how serum metabolite profiles can help understand feed efficiency in lactating Holsteins and identify biomarkers for predicting residual feed intake (RFI).
- Comparisons were made between high and low RFI cows at different lactation stages, revealing significant differences in various metabolites, especially notable changes in early and mid-lactation.
- The findings suggest that specific metabolites, like p-Hydroxyhippuric acid and acetylornithine, could serve as effective biomarkers for predicting RFI, with models showing varying predictive accuracy across lactation stages.
Reducing methane (CH) emissions from agriculture, among other sectors, is a key step to reducing global warming. There are many strategies to reduce CH emissions in ruminant animals, including genetic selection, which yields cumulative and permanent genetic gains over generations. A single-step genomic evaluation for methane efficiency (MEF) was officially implemented in April 2023 for the Canadian Holstein breed, aiming to reduce CH emissions without affecting production levels.
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- The study investigates the genetic basis of body conformation traits in dairy cows, linking these traits to longevity, fertility, and overall health.
- Researchers conducted genome-wide association studies (GWAS) on 14 specific traits in Holstein cows using high-density SNP genotypes derived from a large dataset of North American Holsteins.
- A total of 20 significant SNPs were identified for various traits, with some markers showing strong evidence of association, highlighting potential genomic regions that could be targeted for further genetic improvement in dairy cattle.
Article Synopsis
- Ruminants, like dairy cows, can digest plant materials that humans cannot, thanks to the microbes in their rumen that provide essential nutrients for growth and milk production.
- This study aimed to explore the genetic and microbial factors influencing feed efficiency in lactating Holstein cows by analyzing their intake and milk production data alongside their genetic makeup.
- The researchers discovered genetic regions linked to the abundance of certain rumen microbes, revealing complex interactions where the cow's genome directly and indirectly influences feed efficiency and microbial populations, suggesting implications for breeding practices.
Background: Structural variants (SVs) such as deletions, duplications, and insertions are known to contribute to phenotypic variation but remain challenging to identify and genotype. A more complete, accessible, and assessable collection of SVs will assist efforts to study SV function in cattle and to incorporate SV genotyping into animal evaluation.
Results: In this work we produced a large and deeply characterized collection of SVs in Holstein cattle using two popular SV callers (Manta and Smoove) and publicly available Illumina whole-genome sequence (WGS) read sets from 310 samples (290 male, 20 female, mean 20X coverage).