Biotechnology in Growth Regulation

This book is basically a compilation of scientific papers presented in part of the Symposium on Genetics in Agriculture at the 1983 Annual Meetings of the Genetics Society of Canada.Animal breeding, especially across the various domestic species, is a broad topic for a single book.However, the overall purpose of this book is to provide a "picture" of the total area of animal breeding rather than a more in-depth treatment of the topic.In this regard, it provides the reader with a broad view of bom similarities and differences in the breeding systems required for genetic advancement in dairy and beef cattle, swine, sheep, and chickens.Eleven authors contributed specific sections of the text, which related to their individual expertise.It should be noted that these contributions largely represent data presented in 1983, yet the majority of significant contributions in this field have been documented in this review.The book contains two major parts.The first, "Progress and Future Prospects by Species and Commodity," is divided into a discussion of the following: dairy cattle, beef cattle, sheep, swine, egg chickens, meat chickens, and general progress and prospects.The authors noted that traits for product quality and cost reduction will likely receive increased selection emphasis as progress in production rate and yield gradually declines.The second part, "Contributions of Scientific Research to Animal Breeding," is divided into the following headings: quantitative and statistical genetics, biochemical and physiological genetics, disease resistance genetics, genetics improvement using reproductive technologies, and molecular genetics.This part of the book primarily highlights major accomplishments in these areas and provides numerous references for locating more in-depth information.In the concluding remarks, the author succinctly outlines the challenges of integrating and balancing the conventional breeding and biotechnological approaches in order to optimize future progress in animal breeding.