Estimating additive and dominance variances for complex traits in pigs combining genomic and pedigree information

Genet Mol Res. 2015 Jun 11;14(2):6303-11. doi: 10.4238/2015.June.11.4.

Abstract

Knowledge of dominance effects should improve ge-netic evaluations, provide the accurate selection of purebred animals, and enable better breeding strategies, including the exploitation of het-erosis in crossbreeds. In this study, we combined genomic and pedi-gree data to study the relative importance of additive and dominance genetic variation in growth and carcass traits in an F2 pig population. Two GBLUP models were used, a model without a polygenic effect (ADM) and a model with a polygenic effect (ADMP). Additive effects played a greater role in the control of growth and carcass traits than did dominance effects. However, dominance effects were important for all traits, particularly in backfat thickness. The narrow-sense and broad-sense heritability estimates for growth (0.06 to 0.42, and 0.10 to 0.51, respectively) and carcass traits (0.07 to 0.37, and 0.10 to 0.76, respec-tively) exhibited a wide variation. The inclusion of a polygenic effect in the ADMP model changed the broad-sense heritability estimates only for birth weight and weight at 21 days of age.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Birth Weight / genetics*
  • Breeding
  • Genetic Variation
  • Genomics*
  • Meat
  • Multifactorial Inheritance / genetics*
  • Pedigree
  • Swine / genetics*
  • Swine / growth & development