A Steak in Genomics™

NCBA has recognized the changing face of selection in the seedstock industry. In order to help commercial producers make wiser selection decisions during the upcoming bull sales this spring, they are hosting a webinar at 7:00 pm CST on February 19th. Space is limited, so sign up soon. For those who can't catch the session live, it will be recorded and a link posted on the NCBA webpage. The seminar will feature Dr. Dan Moser from the American Angus Association , Jack Ward from the American Hereford Association , and Dr. Wade Shafer from the American Simmental Association . For more information and to register, visit the NCBA website . Loading...

The American Angus Association® and Angus Genetics Inc. (AGI) will host the first-ever International Genomics Symposium as part of the 2015 Angus Means Business National Convention and Trade Show. The event takes place Nov. 3 in Overland Park, Kan., and will provide cattle producers with cutting-edge information about advancements in genomics technology – and how these advances impact their businesses. The symposium is sponsored by GeneSeek, a leading provider of comprehensive genomics solutions to the cattle industry, including the GeneSeek Genomic Profiler (GGP-HD). “We are excited about the symposium and what it will mean for the cattle business,” says Dan Moser, AGI president. “Genomics is rapidly reshaping the way we produce livestock, and providing producers with the best information available will not only help us improve quality and consistency, but also make our industry more competitive.” Genomics researcher and entrepreneur Richard Resnick (previously featured on this blog) ...

DNA sampling Tonya Amen, AGI During the second portion of the Breed Improvement session, Dr. Amen answered the question "How can we avoid sample failure when DNA testing animals?" She gave four points: Have proper collectors on hand. Blood samples are preferred, as the process can be automated. Blood samples can also be archived, whereas tissue samples cannot be. Contact your DNA service provide or see the Angus website. Have samples properly identified. "You cannot invent your own collection system!" said Amen. A business card, airline barf bag, and other home-remedies won't work! Practice good sampling technique. Make sure you have a nickel sized spot that has soaked completely through the card. Do not send wet samples-mold will grow like crazy! Make sure samples dry overnight in a safe place (not the dash of your truck!). Package well. Padded envelopes work well. Consider shipping method. How long will the sample be in transit? Staff at AGI have a...

Previously, when I spoke with commercial producers about genomic predictions for their heifers, I talked about two products, the GeneMax Focus and the GeneMax Advantage tests marketed by Zoetis. This has now changed. GeneMax Focus and GeneMax Advantage Of course, genomic predictions for seedstock cattle have been available for a large number of breeds, including Angus, Red Angus, Simmental, Hereford, Limousin, Gelbvieh, Santa Gertrudis, and Charolais. But, genomic predictions for commercial cattle where only available from Zoetis for high-percentage (greater than 75%) Angus cattle. GeneMax Focus was the first commercial cattle genomic prediction test released. It provides predictions on a 5 point scale for marbling and gain, and an index called a GMX score on a scale from 1 to 100. These scores are percentile ranks where 50 is average, 1 is the bottom of the heap, and 99 is top of the class. This test cost $17. From my conversations, it explains about 20% of the variation in mar...

On January 27th I spoke with Scott Brown during the evening portion of the Southwest Missouri MU Extension Beef Cattle Conference organized by Patrick Davis, Andy McCorkill, and Eldon Cole. I discussed the facts about EPDs working to change a herd and how genomic testing can improve the precision and reliability of EPDs. Genomic testing is allowing us to select for traits that were previously not under selection, such as feed efficiency , bovine respiratory disease resistance, embryonic loss, and tenderness. You can download my slides from my extension website . But, in this post, I want to focus on Scott Brown's comments. For those of you who don't know Dr. Brown, he is a leading agriculture economist who has been influential in the formation of agricultural policy on the state and national level. On Tuesday night he gave a projection on the future of beef cattle economics. As we all know, beef prices are at record highs, but this is driven by historically low cattle num...

STOCKTON, Mo. – The Southwest Missouri MU Extension Beef Cattle Conference begins at 4 p.m., Jan. 27, 2015, at the Stockton United Methodist Church in Stockton. The Southwest Missouri MU Extension Beef Cattle Conference is designed to provide the latest information on beef cattle production, marketing, economics, nutrition, and forage utilization.  Presenters at the meeting include: Dr. Scott Brown, assistant research professor of agricultural and applied economics at University of Missouri, will provide a 2015 economic outlook of the beef cattle industry. Dr. Jared Decker, assistant professor of beef genetics extension and computational genomics at the University of Missouri, will discuss beef cattle genetics. Sarah Kenyon, agronomy specialist with MU Extension in Texas County, will discuss pasture management to reduce fescue toxicity. The evening meal will be catered by Maggie Mae's Tea Room of Miller, Mo. “That same evening, agriculture businesses that have s...

There was standing room only for the Breed Improvement Session of the Angus Means Business National Convention  on November 4th, 2014. Genomic Recalibration Dan Moser, Angus Genetics Incorporated Performance data reported to the American Angus Association has become more important than ever. Not only is this data necessary to get highly precise estimates from sires, but it is the foundation of developing genomic predictions for genomic-enhanced EPDs. In the training or recalibration of genomic predictions, basically an EPD effect is estimated for every DNA variant included in the genomic prediction test. The genomic prediction (also called the Molecular Breeding Value, MBV) is the sum of every EPD effect for approximately 50,000 DNA variants evenly spread throughout the cattle chromosomes. Initial GE-EPDs in 2010 were based on 2,253 animals. In 2012 the training set increased to  11,756, by 2013 the training set was larger than 38,000 animals, and now in 2014 has reach...