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Swine genetics and reproduction
The performance of pigs is the result of two influences: genetics and environment. Because the genetics of a pig plays an important role in its performance and meat quality, all pig producers should be familiar with the potential and application of genetic selection.
The genetic potential of pigs can have a major influence on the productivity and profitability of a pig enterprise. It is the combination of genetics, nutrition, health, environment and management that influences such factors as litter size, growth rates and carcass quality.
The reproductive herd is for the multiplication of maternal and paternal lines that are prized for economically valuable reproductive traits, or, traits that generate desirable offspring reliably. Typically, prized reproductive traits include litter size, particularly total number of pigs born, and pigs weaned, weight of the litter of piglets at birth and weaning, wean-to-estrus interval (WEI), and pigs per sow per year (PSY). In more recent years, length of time a sow remains productive in the herd (longevity or survivability) is increasing in priority for major genetic lines. These traits are prioritized due to the impact on value of the sow to the herd.
Introduction: High mortality in the pig industry is a welfare problem as well as it reduces the farmer's income. The Danish Pig farmers have decided to reduce the mortality with 20 % before 2020 compared to the 2011 level. For each percent the mortality is reduced in the farrowing units the gross margin per sow per year is increased by 6 euro. The objective of this study was to provide knowledge of the differences in management, health, feeding, and housing...
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Introduction: The administration of Altrenogest (ALT) is an effective system to synchronize oestrus gilts but it has to be utilized only in pubertal animals. Usually, it is difficult to precisely know the reproductive status of gilts and some animals may be treated with ALT even if they are not pubertal. The aim of this study has been to differentiate pubertal from not-pubertal gilts by ultrasound (US) evaluation of ovary and uterus before a program of oestrus synchronization...
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Introduction: Teat necrosis of newborn piglets might result in shorter teats, ‘pin teats’, teat sphincter insufficiency, or non-functional, ‘blind’ teats in affected female piglets. It can cause substantial economic loss in the production of high-quality breeding gilts. Protective methods (adhesive bandages) are rarely used in the practice or, even if applied, sometimes their use is belated or not effective enough. Thus, the knowledge of...
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Introduction: A 3-year-old Landrace boar with a bilateral swelling of the scrotum was submitted to the Swine clinic in August. History reported a period of hyperthermia, anorexia, depression and weight loss in May. Recovery was obtained after a treatment based on antibiotic (lincomycin and ceftiofur) and anti-inflammatory (steroid) medication injections. In July, the boar fell down after a supervised natural mating. Materials and Methods: The present...
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Introduction: Leptin is the hormone produced in the adipocytes of white adipose tissue. Concentration of leptin in blood serum is correlated with thickness of backfat. It was confirmed that sows with higher leptin concentration show heat faster after weaning. To properly choose sows for mating, it is necessary to determine their body condition. It could be done using BCS (subjective method) or USG (objective method). In the literature breeding condition is described as...
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Influenza A virus (IAV) reassortment is a major driver for virus diversification that facilitates the emergence of novel viruses that cause zoonotic infections and even influenza pandemics (1–3). Differing from genetic drift that gradually accumulates point mutations on the virus genome during replication, reassortment is more efficient at modifying the virus’s genetic components and expedites virus evolution by swapping intact gene segments between multiple viruses during...
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Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) is a highly challenging and complex viral disease that severely affects both the reproductive and respiratory systems of pigs. PRRS leads to significant economic losses in pig industries worldwide due to decreased productivity, increased mortality, and costly control...
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Introduction: The Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome virus (PRRSv) is a disease endemic on most porcine herds causing significant economic impact in the pig sector. Two genotypes were identified nearly simultaneously in Europe and the USA with antigenic differences that lead to two distinct genotypes: the European type (genotype 1) and the North American type (genotype 2). Materials and Methods: The PRRSv infection status has been followed...
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A review by F.P. Bortolozzo, M.B. Menegat, A.P.G. Mellagi, M.L. Bernardi, and I. Wentz, published in Reproduction in Domestic Animals (Reprod. Domest. Anim. 2015, 50, Suppl. 2, 80–84), examines new strategies to improve the efficiency of artificial insemination in swine. The primary goal is to reduce the number of sperm cells required per insemination dose while maintaining high reproductive performance, a key factor in optimizing the use of high-genetic-merit...
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Introduction: Vaccination is one of the effective methods to control boar from PRRSV infection in China. But, many people are hesitant to vaccinate boars because they worried vaccination could affect boar semen quality. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of a PRRS modified live vaccine (Ingelvac® PRRS MLV) on boar semen quality to provide a reference basis for PRRS boar vaccination. Materials and Methods: The trial was carried out in...
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Speculation over the Provisional Ruling on Anti-dumping Duties of Lysine by the EU Against China
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Introduction: Mycoplasma hyorhinis is a common inhabitant of the upper respiratory tract and tonsils of pigs. Its role as a potential respiratory pathogen remains controversial. Information on the population structure of M. hyorhinis might help to get a clearer picture on specific strains in the pig population involved in clinical disorders. Using multilocus sequence typing (MLST) we therefore genetically characterized M. hyorhinis isolates from Swiss...
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Introduction: Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus (PEDV), a member of the family Coronaviridae genus Alphacoronavirus is an enveloped, single – stranded RNA virus. PED was first reported in Europe in 1978. Since then outbreaks of PED infections have been reported in many countries including Europe and Asia. In America, the PEDV was first identified in USA in May 2013.The purpose of this study was to report the detection of PEDV in natural outbreaks in Colombian Swine...
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Effects of balancing low protein diets with supplemental amino acids on performance and carcass composition of growing-finishing pigs
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Introduction: Porcine Circovirus Type 2 (PCV2) is an important pathogen related to several disease syndromes in pigs, collectively named PCVD (PCV disease). PCV2 strains are currently classified into four genotypes: PCV2a, PCV2b, PCV2c and PCV2d. The latter is considered an emergent genotype. It has been, indeed, increasingly isolated worldwide, mainly in cases of suspected vaccine failure, rising concerns about vaccine protection and possible ongoing genetic...
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The reproductive system of swine plays a critical role in determining their breeding efficiency and overall health. Proper functioning of this system is essential for achieving optimal fertility rates, ensuring healthy offspring, and maintaining the sustainability of swine production. However, various...
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Introduction: A repeat-breeding (RB) occurrence increases non-productive days of female pigs (NPD), and consequently decreases herd productivity. However, characteristics of RB female pigs are not well defined or studied in swine. Also, few studies have compared lifetime reproductive performance between RB and non-RB female pigs. Our objectives were 1) to define and characterize RB occurrences using data from commercial farms in southern EU, 2) to examine factors...
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Introduction: Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) is considered one of the most economically important infectious diseases of swine. PRRSV is divided into European (Type I) and American (Type II) genotypes. PRRS is caused by a single stranded positive-sense RNA enveloped virus with a high mutation rate leading to greater heterogeneity of the nucleotide sequence between the individual strains. The high genetic virus diversity increases the risk of reduced...
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For a long time, the topic of fibre supplementation for the sow was only discussed in connection with the prevention of constipation in the period close to birth. In recent years, fibre supplementation has been increasingly used in the context of positively influencing the performance of sows and piglets. The genetic progress made in sows in recent years represents a major challenge for management. The number of weaned piglets is increasing worldwide (Fig. 1). Modern sows wean 33-35...
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Introduction: During late lactation ovarian follicles grow and regress in waves and follicular waves have also been documented in pre-pubertal gilts. The wean-to-oestrus interval (WOI) and oocyte quality can each be influenced by when sows are bred relative to stage of the wave. It is known that feeding altrenogest (AT) to primiparous sows after weaning can improve reproductive performances and that ovarian follicle diameters are reported to be greater in sows after AT treatment...
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Introduction: Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS), caused by PRRS virus (PRRSV), is a major threat to the swine industry worldwide. The genome of PRRSV is characteristic of its extensive genetic variation, resulting in the complexity of not only genotype but strain diversity. In China, the distribution and ranks of the different PRRSV strains remain unknown in the swine herds although classical, high pathogenic (HP-) and novel variant PRRSVs co-exist. This study...
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Introduction: Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS), caused by PRRS virus (PRRSV), still engenders immense economic losses to the swine industry worldwide. The co-existence of multi–type stains, rapid evolutionary rate and possible recombination of PRRSV lead to increased genetic diversity. Here we report the important recombination of 3 Chinese PRRSV strains collected during 2013-2015. Materials and Methods: Full-length genome of four...
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