Design of Reference Populations for Genomic Selection in Crossbreeding Programs

E.M. van Grevenhof, J.H.J. van der Werf

Research output: Contribution to conferenceConference paperAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

In crossbreeding (CB) programs, genomic selection offers the opportunity to make efficient use of information on crossbreds in the selection of purebred candidates (PB). In a deterministic simulation study, we evaluated the use of various proportions of crossbred animals in a reference population for genomic selection of purebred animals used in a crossbreeding program. When the breeding objective is to improve crossbred performance, the optimal proportion of CB in the reference population is 100%, but most of the potential gains are achieved if this proportion is only 50%. Optimal proportions and relative loss depend on the emphasis in the breeding objective on PB and the correlation between PB and CB performance. In most cases, adding CB animals to the reference population is beneficial, but the added value is lower and can become quite marginal if the proportion is higher than ~50%.
Original languageEnglish
Publication statusPublished - 2014
Event10th World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production WCGALP 2014, Vancouver, Canada -
Duration: 17 Aug 201422 Aug 2014

Conference/symposium

Conference/symposium10th World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production WCGALP 2014, Vancouver, Canada
Period17/08/1422/08/14

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