Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English English
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS
Content archived on 2024-04-30

Characterization of genetic variation in the European pig to facilitate the maintenance and exploitation of biodiversity

Objective



Efficient and standardised tools to control and measure genetic diversity in European farm animals are essential for the conservation of a rich pool of genetic resources. Current progress in genotyping technologies and genome maps in the EC PiGMaP projects (1991-1996) and elsewhere have now paved the way for a large scale application of such tools. Such a demonstration is required to provide the farm animal selection industry with the incentive to participate fully in such programmes. The centres involved in this proposed Pig Biodiversity project have extensive experience in the development of polymorphic DNA markers, their use for the study of genome evolution and the making of genome maps, the management of genome databases, the breeding industry, the maintenance of genetic diversity in domestic animals. The project will use sampling and other procedures recommended by the FAO and ISAG working groups. Furthermore, a small pilot trial carried out in the EC PiGMaP 2 project will help ensure that robust protocols are used in the proposed study.
The overall objective of the project is to provide an accurate description of the biodiversity of the European pig. This will be achieved by sampling 50 individuals from each of 70 different pig breeds and lines from Europe and determining diversity at the DNA level. An overall description of the diversity of those breeds will be provided by genotyping 50 individuals from each population, either individually or on pooled samples, using 50 micro-satellite markers. Statistical analysis of micro-satellite genotypes, including the 12 breeds investigated in the EC PiGMaP 2 pilot trial, will provide estimates of breed relatedness and the extent of the genetic diversity among the commercial breeds in 15 European countries.
This demonstration project will lead to a significant survey of genetic variability in pigs, and to the validation of the diagnostic tools. It will show the broad applicability of such studies by including closely related commercial lines derived from the same major breeds as well as rare breeds threatened by extinction, allowing to establish priorities for conservation, both in a short-term commercial context and in a longer-term perspective of maintaining the species biodiversity. The reference data and tools produced will be the seed for further investigations and the extension of the survey to encompass a world-wide survey as proposed by the FAO. For this purpose, the data, protocols, source of reagents generated will be made available electronically as an extension of the existing pig genome database (PIGBASE) and all requested data will also be made available to the FAO (Domestic Animal Diversity Information System - DAD-IS) and European (EAAP-Animal Genetic Data Bank) databases. Long term duplicate storage of DNA, allowing the application of new technologies available in the future, will also be provided.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: https://op.europa.eu/en/web/eu-vocabularies/euroscivoc.

You need to log in or register to use this function

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

Data not available

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

CSC - Cost-sharing contracts

Coordinator

Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)
EU contribution
No data
Address
Domaine de Vilvert
78352 Jouy-en-Josas
France

See on map

Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

No data

Participants (5)

My booklet 0 0