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Submitted to: Agricultural Experiment Station Publication
Publication Type: Experiment Station Publication Acceptance Date: 1/8/2005 Publication Date: 1/15/2005 Citation: Lunney, J.K. 2005. Genetic and functional genomic approaches to improve production and quality of pork. Agricultural Experiment Station Publication. http://lgu.umd.edu/lgu_v2/homepages/outline.cfm?trackID=2055 Interpretive Summary: Technical Abstract: The NC-1004 project addresses 'Genetic and Functional Genomic Approaches to Improve Production and Quality of Pork.' At BARC this work has focused on NC-1004 Objective 2: Discover genetic mechanisms controlling animal health in pork production. Efforts have predominantly been aimed at determining the genes which control immune responses to infectious diseases and vaccination. In collaboration with BARC BHNRC scientists real-time gene expression assays have been used to determine major genes controlling immune responses to vaccination with porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) or to infection with the intracellular parasite, Toxoplasma gondii. Results have highlighted critical early innate immune response genes that help prevent highly effective anti-PRRSV responses. Additional work has been aimed at the international standardization of the nomenclature for the Swine Leukocyte Antigen (SLA) class I genes and associated haplotypes. The SLA gene alleles are first determinants of swine disease and vaccine responses. Future work will be directed at expanding our immune response studies to better understand mechanisms that will help stimulate protective anti-disease immunity. |
