Choose your Genetics... May the Best Win!!!

In this fast paced world we live in today, traits and genetics are continuously being improved by genetic transgenesis in production animals. Already, genetic transgenesis in animals show great advantages over transgenesis in plants, even though in the scheme of things have come about quite slowly. Transgenesis can have an impact on breeding techniques which include genetic selection, control of reproduction, conversion of feed abilities, and resistance to disease, for example – mastitis and foot and mouth disease in cattle. It also gives the produces a say in the phenotypes they wish to be portrayed in their stock.

Different methods of transgenesis can be seen between the species of animals. In pigs, gene addition is achieved by DNA microinjection into one-cell embryo’s, which is achieved by adding the genetic information firmly into the genome. In ruminants however, gene addition is completed by the classical transfection in fetal cells further used to generate cloned animals. This foreign DNA may be a mutated but an active version of a gene, or a different gene all together.

Even though transgenesis is out there being performed, and has been for over 15 years, the products are yet to be sold to consumers. This is mainly due to technical and financial problems found within transgenesis. There are a number of transgenic production animals which are being looked at for human consumption. This includes a number of fish species which show an increased growth rate, and pigs which have both improved muscle growth and development, and milk rich in proteins for their piglets. Transgenesis in production animals can have quite a positive effect on production quality and quantity in a variety of animals.

By Bethanie Tillman

Student Nunber - 41160916

Primary Source

Houbebine, L 2002, Transgenesis to improve animal production, Livestock Production Sciences, vol 74, pp 255-268.

Secondary Sources

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/2007-01-01-genetic-cattle_x.htm

http://www.ars.usda.gov/IS/pr/2005/050404.htm

Houbebine, L 2000, From animal transgenesis to molecular farming, INIST-CNRS, pp 13-27.

http://www.nature.com/nrg/journal/v4/n10/images/nrg1183-f1.gif

Related Readings

http://www.acs.ucalgary.ca/~browder/transgenic.html

http://www.ipn.uni-kiel.de/eibe/UNIT11EN.PDF