A Steak in Genomics™

 The Beef Reproduction Task Force invited me to present in their 2022 Webinar series. You can watch the webinar below or on Facebook. Thanks again to BRTF for the opportunity to present!

 On December 3rd, Harly Durbin, a PhD student in my group, successfully defended her PhD dissertation. You can watch a video of her public seminar, in which she discusses hair shedding and genotype-by-environment interactions for growth.  Congratulations Harly!

  It has been a very busy fall for the Decker Computational Genomics Group ! This will be capped off by two PhD defenses the first week of December.  “Leveraging Large-scale Beef Cattle Genomic Data to Identify the Architecture of Polygenic Selection  and Local Adaptation” Presented by: Troy Rowan December 1st, 2020 at 1 pm CST Seminar will be presented on Zoom . In January, Troy will be starting as an assistant professor with a focus on beef genomics research and extension at University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture.  "Genomics of Seasonal Hair Shedding and Ecoregion-Specific Growth to Identify Environmentally-Adapted Beef Cattle" Presented by: Harly Durbin December 3rd, 2020 at 12 pm CST Seminar will be presented on Zoom .  In January, Harly will be continuing in my group as a postdoctoral researcher. We appreciate all of the support and collaboration from the beef industry that has made this research possible. Further, research would not have been pos...

Researchers seek Hereford and Red Angus heifers in include in the trials. By Heather Smith Thomas Reprinted with permission of BEEF Magazine. You can’t sell a calf that’s never born. That’s why fertility is the most important trait in beef cattle because it all has to start with a pregnancy. A heifer that settles early in the breeding season and continues to have a calf on time every year is much better than a heifer that does not breed, breeds late, or has only one calf and then comes up open and must be replaced by another heifer that is expensive to develop. There are a number of methods producers utilize in selecting heifers, but accurate tools to select heifers for fertility and early puberty have not been available—until now. The University of Missouri is doing a research project looking into the genetics of fertility and heifer puberty, led by Jared Decker, state beef genetics Extension specialist. He recently received a grant from USDA-NIFA (National Institute of Food and Agric...

University of Missouri's Southwest Research Center near Mt. Vernon hosted an open house December 3rd that gave attendees a peek at the direction beef cattle research is taking at the 890 acre Center. Dr. Jordan Thomas, MU Extension beef reproduction specialist, led the presentations by asking if producers think they can afford not to use technology. Specifically, he mentioned estrus synchronization and artificial insemination. "The genetics of the AI bred calves allows producers to be competitive with the best herds in the country due to the use of elite bulls with higher accuracy expected progeny differences (EPD)," said Thomas. "The protocol results in more early-born heifers that are more likely to conceive earlier and remain in the herd longer." That longevity adds to herd profitability over the females lifetime. Their early-born steer mates will also be heavier than those out of a natural service sire that's born late in the calving season. Dr....

What does it mean to have a successful cow herd in the Ozarks? What should be the genetic focus? How do we select and manage cattle to perform on toxic endophyte-infected fescue? What technologies can be used profitably? What marketing opportunities could add value to the cattle? These are questions facing every beef operation in Southwest Missouri, including the University of Missouri Southwest Research Center. As the Center moves away from a focus on grazing dairy production, faculty and staff at the Southwest Research Center and on campus at the University of Missouri recognize there is now an opportunity to increase the emphasis placed on beef cattle Research and Extension at the Southwest Research Center. With support from the Southwest Research Center Advisory Board and key stakeholders in the regional and national beef industry, an effort to expand and improve the Southwest Research Center beef herd is now underway. A Beef Focus for Southwest Missouri A defined objective ...

In January, Angus Genetics, Inc. (AGI) announced the release of research Claw Set and Foot Angle EPDs. The development of a research EPD is the second step towards a production EPD. This followed research presented in the summer of 2017 which found heritabilities of 0.34 for foot angle and 0.21 for claw set. Estimating heritability (portion of the trait influenced by genetics) is the first step towards a production EPD. This research also found a genetic correlation of 0.22 between the two traits, indicating that both traits need to be reported and analyzed. Stephen Miller, AGI Director of Genetic Research stated, "“Angus breeders have completed a tremendous amount of data reporting in such a short period of time; this is truly a testament to their commitment toward genetic progress. We are absolutely thrilled to begin the process of rolling this breakthrough out to the membership.” Kelli Retallick, AGI Director of Genetic Services cautioned, “Though we are getting closer ...

Written by  Tamar Crum, Jared E. Decker, Robert D. Schnabel, and Jeremy F. Taylor “My mom always said life was like a box of chocolates.   You never know what you’re gonna get.” – Forrest Gump You may be wondering how in the world does a box of chocolates relate to breed composition of livestock? Or, if you are anything like me, it’s where did I hide that Halloween chocolate, I need some! I think that there are two analogies between a box of chocolates and the breed composition of livestock.   First, we can pick out the white chocolates and may even be able to separate the milk chocolates from the dark chocolates.   This is similar to our ability to visually evaluate breed characteristics and sort livestock into different breed or subspecies ( Bos taurus or Bos indicus influenced) based on breed characteristics.   However, such visual evaluation of breed composition is not terribly accurate.   For example, biting into a piece of dark chocol...

Position: Assistant Extension Professor of Animal Sciences, non-tenure track 100% Extension Responsibilities: The person is expected to develop a nationally recognized education and engagement program in cow-calf production with emphasis on reproduction and management of the beef cow. This includes training regional extension livestock specialists, veterinarians and veterinary students, and allied industry personnel, interacting with cattle producers and agribusiness firms, and providing support for the National Center for Applied Reproduction and Genomics in Beef Cattle. Qualifications: The individual must have a Ph.D. in Animal Science and an extensive knowledge of the beef cattle industry. Experience with and a strong interest in working with beef cattle producers and allied industries is necessary. Must be able to interact and collaborate effectively with faculty in reproductive biology and genomics. Location: The Division of Animal Sciences, University of Missouri, Columb...

Written by Logan Jackson College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources The Division of Animal Sciences at the University of Missouri College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources (CAFNR) boasts many strengths, including its vast research and work with beef cattle reproduction and genetics. The faculty, who have responsibilities not only in research, but also in teaching, extension and economic development, are experts in taking their findings and sharing them with farmers, ranchers and the Missouri community as a whole. With the help of a $300,000 grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the division will be able to expand on those leadership opportunities. The grant, through USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), will be used to develop The National Center for Applied Reproduction and Genomics (NCARG) in Beef Cattle. The goal of NCARG will be to promote the economic impact of the technologies Mizzou Animal Sciences fac...

It is the time of year to once again record and report hair shedding scores. This fact sheet on eBEEF.org should come in handy. Participants in our hair shedding genomic research project should have received an email from Harly Durbin. This email contained an Excel file to report hair shedding scores on enrolled cattle. If not, please get in touch with us as soon as possible. We must receive 2017 data in these Excel files! It is important that we receive data on our target goal of 8,000 cattle. If your cattle are enrolled in the research program, we should have received DNA cards and 2016 data from you by now. If we have not yet received your data, you are in danger of being removed from the program. If we have not received your data, please get in touch with Harly and I by email or by phone . We know receiving genomic-enhanced EPDs is very important to hair shedding study participants. This is also a priority to us. We have worked with breed associations and GeneSeek to m...