Estimativas de parâmetros genéticos de características reprodutivas de touros Nelore, de dois e três anos de idade

Pedrosa

Journal of Animal Science

et al. 2011

The objective of this study was to evaluate the possible use of biometric testicular traits as selection criteria for young Nellore bulls using Bayesian inference to estimate heritability coefficients and genetic correlations. Multitrait analysis was performed including 17,211 records of scrotal circumference obtained during andrological assessment (SCAND) and 15,313 records of testicular volume and shape. In addition, 50,809 records of scrotal circumference at 18 mo (SC18), used as an anchor trait, were analyzed. The (co)variance components and breeding values were estimated by Gibbs sampling using the Gibbs2F90 program under an animal model that included contemporary groups as fixed effects, age of the animal as a linear covariate, and direct additive genetic effects as random effects. Heritabilities of 0.42, 0.43, 0.31, 0.20, 0.04, 0.16, 0.15, and 0.10 were obtained for SC18, SCAND, testicular volume, testicular shape, minor defects, major defects, total defects, and satisfactory andrological evaluation, respectively. The genetic correlations between SC18 and the other traits were 0.84 (SCAND), 0.75 (testicular shape), 0.44 (testicular volume), -0.23 (minor defects), -0.16 (major defects), -0.24 (total defects), and 0.56 (satisfactory andrological evaluation). Genetic correlations of 0.94 and 0.52 were obtained between SCAND and testicular volume and shape, respectively, and of 0.52 between testicular volume and testicular shape. In addition to favorable genetic parameter estimates, SC18 was found to be the most advantageous testicular trait due to its easy measurement before andrological assessment of the animals, even though the utilization of biometric testicular traits as selection criteria was also found to be possible. In conclusion, SC18 and biometric testicular traits can be adopted as a selection criterion to improve the fertility of young Nellore bulls.

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 90%

“…The mean and range observed for SC18, SCAND, TV, and TS are compatible with those reported in the literature for Nel-lore males selected under extensive conditions (Quirino and Bergmann, 1998;Unanian et al, 2000;Valentim et al, 2002;Dias et al, 2006Dias et al, , 2007Silveira et al, 2010).…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 90%

Testicular traits as selection criteria for young Nellore bulls

Pedrosa

Journal of Animal Science

et al. 2011

Reprod Domestic Animals

“…Regarding the average percentage of animals that were unsound for reproduction and discarded, the results of the present study (Table ) were inferior to the results shown by Salvador () and Dias et al. (), who presented values of 59.8% and 73.7%, respectively. The last author attributed the value to the poor nutritional conditions that the animals were subjected to.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

“…The results presented in Table are superior to the results presented by Salvador () and Dias et al. (), who found that 40.2 and 26.3% of sexually mature 2‐year‐old animals belonged to the Nellore race. However, the sexual maturity values reported in this study were close to the values recorded by Silveira et al.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 85%

Sexual Precocity of Nellore Bulls that are Offspring of Super Precocious, Precocious and Normal Cows in Extensive Farming Conditions

Siqueira

Oba

Pinho

et al. 2014

The objective of this work was to verify that mothers classified as super precocious (M1) and precocious (M2) produce more precocious bulls than females classified as normal (M3). This study included 21,186 animals with an average age of 21.29 ± 1.77 months that underwent a breeding soundness evaluation from 1999 to 2008. Of these animals, 2019, 6059 and 13,108 were offspring of M1, M2 and M3 females, respectively. In the breeding soundness examination, the animals were classified as sound for reproduction, sound under a natural mating regime, unsound for reproduction and discarded. To compare the averages obtained for each category of mother within the individual breeding soundness classes, a chi-square test with a 5% error probability was used, considering the effects of year and month of birth and farm. For the three classes of mothers (M1, M2 and M3), 67.26, 67.22 and 64.16% of bull calves were considered sound for reproduction and 19.71, 19.46 and 21.90% were considered unsound for reproduction, respectively. There was no difference in the frequency of animals that were sound for reproduction under the natural breeding regime between the three classes of mothers (8.87, 9.31 and 9.19%, respectively). There was a difference between the numbers of precocious and normal females that were discarded, with frequencies of 4.01 and 4.75%, respectively (p < 0.05). There were differences in year and month of birth and farm between super precocious and precocious cows in relation to the breeding soundness classification of the animals. It was concluded that the bull offspring of super precocious and precocious cows presented a higher percentage of approval in the breeding soundness examination than the bull offspring of normal cows, demonstrating that the selection for precocity of females has contributed to an increase in the sexual precocity of the herd in relation to the sexual maturity of bulls.

Reprod Domestic Animals

“…Several studies considered the importance of estimating heritability and genetic, phenotypic and environmental associations among the breeding soundness features and among these and characteristics of economic interest (Dias et al. 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heritability Estimate and Genetic Correlations of Reproductive Features in Nellore Bulls, Offspring of Super Precocious, Precocious and Normal Cows Under Extensive Farming Conditions

Siqueira

Oba

Pinho

et al. 2011

The present work aimed to estimate heritability and genetic correlations of reproductive features of Nellore bulls, offspring of mothers classified as superprecocious (M1), precocious (M2) and normal (M3). Twenty one thousand hundred and eighty-six animals with average age of 21.29 months were used, evaluated through the breeding soundness evaluation from 1999 to 2008. The breeding soundness features included physical semen evaluation (progressive sperm motility and sperm vigour), semen morphology (major, minor and total sperm defects), scrotal circumference (SC), testicular volume (TV) and SC at 18 months of age (SC18). The components of variance, heritability and genetic correlations for and between the features were estimated simultaneously by restricted maximum likelihood, with the use of the vce software system vs 6. The heritability estimates were high for SC18, SC and TV (0.43, 0.63 and 0.54; 0.45, 0.45 and 0.44; 0.42, 0.45 and 0.41, respectively for the categories of mothers M1, M2 and M3) and low for physical and morphological semen aspects. The genetic correlations between SC18 and SC were high, as well as between these variables with TV. High and positive genetic correlations were recorded among SC18, SC and TV with the physical aspects of the semen, although no favourable association was verified with the morphological aspects, for the three categories of mothers. It can be concluded that the mother's sexual precocity did not affect the heritability of their offspring reproduction features.