Breeding for Disease Resistance in Ruminants

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Reproduction".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 December 2022) | Viewed by 5117

Special Issue Editors

National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (Netherlands), 3721 Bilthoven, The Netherlands
Interests: parasitology; genetic resistance to parasitic diseases; anthelmintic resistance
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
1. CISAS - Center for Research and Development in Agrifood Systems and Sustainability, Escola Superior Agrária, Instituto Politécnico de Viana do Castelo, Rua Escola Industrial e Comercial de Nun’Àlvares, 4900-347 Viana do Castelo, Portugal
2. Veterinary and Animal Research Centre (CECAV), UTAD, Associate Laboratory for Animal and Veterinary Sciences (AL4AnimalS) Quinta de Prados, 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal
3. EpiUnit – Instituto de Saúde Pública da Universidade do Porto, Laboratory for Integrative and Translational Research in Population Health (ITR), Rua das Taipas, nº 135, 4050-091 Porto, Portugal
Interests: One Health; food safety; health literacy; parasitology; zoonoses
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues, 

Infectious diseases represent a significant economic and welfare burden to the ruminant livestock industry worldwide. Treatment costs and production losses may rise due to the impact of climate change on the distribution of disease pathogens and pests. Concerns over the global spread of resistance to antibiotics and anthelmintics and their residues in manure and animal products have encouraged the search for alternative control options. In recent years, there has been increased interest in the selection of ruminants for resistance to diseases. The existence of genetic variation in resistance both within and between breeds has already been demonstrated for several diseases, e.g., the case of mastitis- and tuberculosis-resistant cattle and resistance to gastrointestinal nematode infections in small ruminants. The selective breeding of animals that are naturally more resistant to diseases is expected to have a lasting and consistent effect and at low risk of resistance breakdown over time. The efficient use of ruminant genetic resources is therefore likely to increase farm productivity by reducing treatment needs and costs while contributing to the sustainability of animal production, as well as the quality and safety of meat products.

Dr. Helga Waap
Dr. Teresa Letra Mateus
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • ruminants
  • breeding
  • resistance
  • diseases
  • genetic markers

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

13 pages, 669 KiB  
Review
Genetic Resistance of Bovines to Theileriosis
by Diana Valente, Jacinto Gomes, Ana Cláudia Coelho and Inês Carolino
Animals 2022, 12(21), 2903; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12212903 - 23 Oct 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 4247
Abstract
Diseases caused by ticks have a high impact on the health, welfare, and productivity of livestock species. They are also an important cause of economic losses in farms worldwide. An example of such diseases is theileriosis, which can be controlled by drugs or [...] Read more.
Diseases caused by ticks have a high impact on the health, welfare, and productivity of livestock species. They are also an important cause of economic losses in farms worldwide. An example of such diseases is theileriosis, which can be controlled by drugs or vaccines, although these are not fully efficient. Therefore, there is a need to develop alternative and more sustainable and efficient complementary strategies. These may involve the identification and selection of animals more resistant to the disease. Several previous studies have identified significant differences in resistance between different breeds, with resistant breeds typically identified as those native to the region where they are being studied, and susceptible as those from exotic breeds. These studies have indicated that resistance traits are intrinsically related to the modulation of the immune response to infection. This review aims to systematize the general knowledge about theileriosis, emphasize resistance to this disease as a sustainable control strategy, and identify which traits of resistance to the disease are already known in cattle. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Breeding for Disease Resistance in Ruminants)
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