Narrowing down pig disease genetics in Alberta

Researchers at Canada’s University of Alberta have reported progress in breeding pigs with greater resilience.

The method that is studied focuses on breeding using markers, as that method would be more accurate. In a recent project, Dr Michael Dyck and colleagues focused on how they relate to resilience.

Background to all that is selection solely on genes is not sufficient. After all, while genes related to disease resilience for common diseases like Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) have been identified, breeding selection based on these genes is not guaranteed to produce more resilient pigs. That is, gene expression can be affected by the environment, and genes can also interact with other genes, sometimes negatively.

The initiative is funded mainly by PigGen Canada, a non-profit formed by Canada’s pig breeding companies, as well as Genome Alberta.

Using real-world conditions

The team has created what they call the Natural Disease Challenge Model (NDCM) to investigate genomic markers. Dr Dyck described it as “a groundbreaking research framework” that enables disease resilience in pigs to be studied under real-world conditions.

In the approach, pigs in a commercial setting are exposed to multiple pathogens, which is what typically occurs. These pathogens include PRRS virus, influenza A virus, Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae and Streptococcus suis.