Structuring and evaluating the most profitable animal identification system for meat production using genomic information: Livestock Profit Tool (LPT)

Abstract

The Livestock Profit Tool (LPT) technology aims at two products: genetic evaluation for accumulated profit and profitability/@ produced, together with other productive phenotypes that are already used in routine genetic evaluation of farm animals. The innovation also generates a profile of genetic markers associated with accumulated profit and profitability/@ to determine the performance potential of Nellore animals finished in feedlot. For development, approximately 4,000 phenotypes for these two traits will be collected from different herds located in representative Brazilian states of the national beef industry (mainly Midwest), with the BeefTrader platform of Nellore animals in feedlots, and that have known genetic control. Biological samples will be collected, and the animals will be genotyped with a commercial Beadchip GGPi 50k and their data will be imputed with the F-imput software for the Beadchip 777k commercial panel, with a reference population of 500 animals. The programs of the BLUPF90 family will be used for the analysis. For the analysis of parameters and genetic values of animals, the programs AIREMLF90 and BLUPF90; and for the analysis of ssGWAS and the determination of the effects of markers, with their respective additive genetic variances, programs such as PREGSF90 and POSTGSF90 will be additionally used. The phenotypic and genotypic databases will be worked on by @Tech's data science team in a cloud environment. A business model was built together with @Tech's commercial team and its business partners, for the commercialization of genetic analyzes that address the profitability phenotypes and can provide customers with the genetic value for animals in terms of accumulated profit and profitability/@. In addition, the technology will provide a profile of genetic markers that can be used in the genotyping of adult, young and even embryos to determine the potential profitability and use of genomic information for genetic evaluations of the herd. In the first phase was developed (PIPE Phase 1, Proc. FAPESP 2018/15423-8): i) a genetic analysis model built to determine the additive genetics and other parameters, regarding the traits accumulated profit and profitability/@ and ii) genetic markers already prospected for their effects on variance additive genetics of traits. In the current proposal, the second phase is necessary for: a) validation with an independent population, and a larger number of animals for the validation of genetic markers, and b) commercial development of the platform, including integration of this information with animal evaluations on client farms and in a recognized genetic evaluation program. For producers, the traits that directly address the profit in monetary units are easy to understand and are directly linked to the objective sought in this work. Genetic analyzes are routinely implemented by animal breeding programs in cattle with productive traits that classify the animals by their genetic value for each trait, directing the crosses according to the interest of the producers. What is innovative in this work is the use of the accumulated profit and profitability per arroba (@ = 15 kg carcass) produced phenotypes, which are worked as composite traits, as to reach the profitability of each feedlot animal (a phase little explored by genetic evaluation programs), its productivity measures are considered, with control of environmental and external factors. And another important advance as a product is the development of an array of genetic markers to determine the profitability potential of the animal, and thus be used in the selection process along with other traditional tools already used. The two tools can be marketed independently. (AU)