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Inferring purging from pedigree data.

Davorka Gulisija1, James F Crow

  • 1Department of Dairy Science and Laboratory of Genetics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, USA. gulisija@calshp.cals.wisc.edu

Evolution; International Journal of Organic Evolution
|May 12, 2007
PubMed
Summary
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Purging of harmful recessive alleles through selection significantly reduces genetic load in U.S. Jersey cows. This process lowers inbreeding depression by 12.6%, mitigating the negative effects of inbreeding.

Area of Science:

  • Animal genetics
  • Population genetics
  • Quantitative genetics

Background:

  • Inbreeding can expose deleterious recessive alleles, increasing genetic load and causing inbreeding depression.
  • Purging, the removal of these alleles by selection against homozygotes, can mitigate inbreeding's harmful effects.
  • Previous studies often lacked sufficient pedigree data to accurately quantify purging effects over multiple generations.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To estimate the extent of genetic purging in a large population of U.S. Jersey cows.
  • To quantify the reduction in genetic load and inbreeding depression attributable to purging.
  • To assess the impact of historical breeding practices on the effectiveness of purging.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of pedigree data from 59,778 U.S. Jersey cows, spanning up to six generations.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Modeling the reduction in genetic load assuming deleterious recessive homozygotes have zero fitness.
  • Calculating the expressed genetic load and inbreeding depression in the current generation.

    • Main Results:

    • An estimated 17% reduction in total genetic load due to purging, with most of this effect concealed by dominant alleles.
    • A 12.6% reduction in the currently expressed genetic load (inbreeding depression) in the U.S. Jersey cow population.
    • Low historical inbreeding levels and limited pedigree depth (beyond six generations) constrained greater purging effects.

    Conclusions:

    • Genetic purging has demonstrably reduced inbreeding depression in U.S. Jersey cows.
    • The effectiveness of purging is influenced by historical mating strategies and the depth of available pedigree information.
    • The methodology is adaptable for assessing purging in other populations with comprehensive pedigree data.