FUTURE OF TRANSGENESIS – A REVOLUTION IN DAIRY SECTOR (A REVIEW)

Published: November 18, 2011

By: Waqar Ahamd1*, Hafiz A. Samad, H.R. Chaudhry, Fraz Munir Khan§, Abdul Wahab, H.M. Farhan

Summary

The aim of this effort is to draw attention to the significance and application of transgenesis in dairy sector to augment the worth and magnitude of milk. Though, this technology has limited application areas but has a dazzling prospect in dairy sector in future. The references have been taken from Science direct, Pub Med etc. on the subject of transgenesis and processed for meta-analytical study. Pakistan has 62.9 million of cattle and buffalo population whose production was 42.01 million tons milk in 2009 which is much too low in quality and quantity according to the number of animals. More than 65 % of the livestock holding comes from farmers possessing 1 to 6 heads. The effort of cross breeding and artificial insemination has not brought satisfactory results in this consideration. Transgenic animals show the potential to deliver positively despite the given circumstances when farmers will appreciate the amount of milk produced is higher. Both in small ruminants and large ruminants of Pakistan, the number of non-descript animals in production is relatively higher than the number of pure bred. These non-descript animals have shown poor performance after the F1 generation despite indigenous blood. The main problem is disease load of tropics and low feed quality. Marked increase in the utilization of low quality feed and maximum output in shape of milk and meat can be obtained by transgenic animals. Moreover the utilization of Pakistani draught breeds is decreasing due to the adoption of mechanization systems in transportation and agriculture. So, this outsized asset of livestock resources will diminish in future. But by applying transgenesis, these breeds can be transformed into high milk producing transgenic breeds which will enhance the social and economic status of farmer as well as overall production of the country. This review highlights the current status of livestock and reviews techniques of transgenesis and their outcomes. Keywords: Transgenesis, non-descript animals, draught breeds, dairy sector

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