Learning objectives
Provide the student with the fundamentals relative to genetic transmission of characteristics <br />
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Provide the student with the elements for selecting breed animals <br />
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Provide the student with elements for the management of animal populations <br />
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Provide the student with elements on the characteristics of the main breeds of domestic animals
Prerequisites
Applied physics – Basic mathematics for biomedical sciences – Medical and biological computer science <br />
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Histology and embryology – Zoology Histology and embryology - Zoology
Course unit content
Zootechnical systems for the production of meat, milk and other animal-based products. <br />
ZOOTECNIC DEMOGRAPHY <br />
Structure of animal populations. <br />
GENETIC IMPROVEMENT OF ANIMALS IN ZOOTECHNICAL PRODUCTION <br />
Outline of genetic transmission of characteristics. Mendelian heredity (qualitative characteristics, laws of Mendel, gene interaction and deviation from expected Mendelian relationships, sex determination and sex-related heredity, lethal genes, multiple allelism). Population genetic principles (concept of genic and genotypic frequency, law of Hardy-Weinberg). Brief references to statistical concepts (probability, variance, covariance, correlation and regression). Quantitative traits(variability, composition of phenotype environmental variability, additive and non-additive effect of genes, heritability, repeatability). Genetic improvement of animals in zootechnical production. Organisation of selection in Italy (genealogical books, registers). Functional controls of animal productions. Relationships. Methods of estimating the genetic value of breed animals (performance test, Sib test, progeny test, BLUP-animal model). Direct and indirect selection, genetic progress, selection using multiple characteristics. Reproduction methods: blood relationship and crossbreeding. Application of genetic improvement to the main zootechnical productions (bovine: milk and meat; swine: meat). <br />
ZOOTECHNICAL ETHNOGRAPHY AND ETHNOLOGY <br />
General characters, origin, evolution, diffusion, classification of the main breeds: <br />
- breeds of dairy cattle, meat cattle and dual purpose breeds with (meat and milk); <br />
- ovine breeds bred in Italy depending on their potentiality; foreign ovine breeds of major interest for Italian breeding farms; <br />
- goat breeds; <br />
- pig breeds; <br />
- horse breeds; <br />
- classification of canine breeds.
Bibliography
BITTANTE G., ANDRIGHETTO L., RAMANZIN M.: Fondamenti di Zootecnica. Liviana Ed., Padova, 1990 <br />
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CALAMARI L., FAVERZANI S.: Atlante delle razze bovine (CD ROM) <br />
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PAGNACCO G.: Genetica applicata alle produzioni animali. Citta Studi Ed., Milano, 1997 <br />
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WEB SITE: http://www.unipr.it/~sabbioni/ http://www.unipr.it/arpa/facvet/d! ol/dol.htm< /FONT>
