763
Genetic analysis of growth traits in Polled Nellore cattle from tropical region

Monday, August 18, 2014
Posters (The Westin Bayshore)
Mariana Marcia Santos Mamede , Federal University of Goiás, Goiânia, Brazil
Roberto D Sainz , University of California, Davis, CA
Cláudio Ulhôa Magnabosco , Embrapa Cerrados, Brasília, Brazil
Marcelo Correa da Silva , Federal University of Goiás, Goiania, Brazil
Raysildo B. Lôbo , ANCP-Brazilian Society of Breeders and Researchers, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
Ângelo F Nakagawa , OB Brand, Pontes e Lacerda, Brazil
Fernando Brito Lopes , Embrapa Cerrados, Brasília, Brazil
Abstract Text:

(Co)variance components and genetic parameters were estimated for adjusted weights at 120 (W120), 240 (W240), 365 (W365) and 450 (W450) days of age of Polled Nellore cattle born between 1987 and 2010 and pasture-raised. An animal model considering herd-year-season of birth and calf sex as fixed effects and age of cow as covariate was fitted by Gibbs Sampling. Direct heritabilities were estimated as 0.43, 0.61, 0.72 and 0.67 for W120, W240, W365 and W450, respectively. Maternal heritabilities were 0.07 and 0.08 for W120 and W240, respectively. Direct additive genetic correlations between weights at different ages ranged from 0.68 to 0.98. Direct-maternal genetic correlations for W120 and W240 ranged from −0.31 to −0.54. Estimates of maternal heritability ranged from 0.056 to 0.092 for W120 and from 0.064 to 0.096 for W240. This study showed that genetic progress is possible for early body weight.

Keywords:

Growth; Heritability; Zebu.

See more of: Posters: Beef Cattle Breeding (Group 4)
See more of: Species Breeding: Beef cattle
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