Associations between marker genotypes, halothane reaction, CC activity and meat quality characters in a sample of German Landrace pigs

Abstract

Routine blood typing of German Landrace pedigree populations and an earlier study revealed very low frequencies of the favourable alleles at the marker loci Phi, Pgd and H. The hypothesis was that in this population the whole linkage group of favourable alleles at the halothane and neighbouring marker loci may have been lost as a consequence of intense selection for leanness and type. The present study of 1050 German Landrace pigs at the Relliehausen experimental station, where some effort has been made to maintain a higher frequency of the favourable alleles PhiA (0.48), H-(0.43) and PgdA (0.70) gave quite different results.The frequency of halothane-positive pigs found by using a severe test was only 30 %. Only 5.4 %, 8.8 %, 13.4 % and 13.9 7% of animals with PhiAIA, H-I-, PgdAI" and PhiA/B genotypes respectively were halothane-positive. Forty to sixty per cent of pigs with these marker genotypes could therefore be expected to be homozygous halothane-negative ( N I N ) animals. Creatine kinase activity and three selected meat quality characters showed highly significant differences between the AIA and the BIB genotypes for the marker loci Phi and Pgd, with the heterozygotes being intermediate. These differences are greater than those observed between halothanenegative and halothane-positive phenotypes. The only other consistently superior marker genotype in this population was the H blood group genotype H-I-. In contrast to findings from Sweden and Switzerland, the postalbumin locus Po2 and the suppressor locus S for the A -0 blood groups did not exhibit useful marker qualities.It is concluded that in the German Landrace the marker loci Phi, Pgd and H could also be helpful in breeding homozygous halothane-negative pigs with distinctly better meat quality characteristics.

Effects of porcine stress syndrome genotype on maternal traits in swine

“…Further work (Christian, 1976) The association between CPK values and H blood group genotype was supported by Glodek et al (1985). Christian (1977) suggested that the H blood group was closely linked to the gene controlling PSS.…”

“…The S allele which allows the expression of A and 0 is dominant to the recessive allele s, which does not allow expression of the A or 0 genotypes. The S blood group genotype was often used in conjunction with the H blood group genotype to determine PSS susceptibility Christian, 1976;Christian 1977;Jorgensen, 1979;Honjy et al, 1979;Imlah and Thomson, 1979;Glodek et al, 1985). Epistasis between the S locus and the H locus was reported by Rasmusen (1972);Hojny (1974); Hojny et al…”