| Livestock genomics is aimed at dissecting the genetic control of variation in economically important trait, such as disease resistance and product yield/quality. Unraveling the genetic control of such complex traits remains very challenging but farm animals are now well placed to bridge the gap between human biology and traditional model species. Livestock species share with model species the benefits of controlled breeding, while their biology is often much closer to that of humans. Livestock genetics can exploit the abundant genetic variation between divergent breeds as well as segregating variation within breeds, thus getting the best of both worlds. Large numbers of QTL have been detected for a variety of traits but for only a handful has the... |
