Breed characteristics of the allelic profile of the genes that control milk production in cattle

The problem of improving the efficiency of the livestock industry, including dairy farming, has always been given special attention. Thanks to molecular genetic methods it became possible to identify such animals that are able not only to produce high-quality products that meet international standards, but also to transfer their outstanding features from generation to generation. Genetic marking of breeding farm animals is a prerequisite for practical breeding in countries with a well-developed livestock sector (USA, Denmark, Germany, etc.). In our country, over the past decade, the methods of genomic selection are widely used in improving the existing breeding forms of farm animals and in creating new ones. However, in the agricultural enterprises of the South of Russia, including Stavropol, DNA diagnostics for various reasons has not been properly used in practical breeding. All this predetermines the goal of the present research, which is to study the breed characteristics of allele polymorphism of the genes that control productivity, to identify the genotypes important for selection in dairy cattle herds of the main breeds in the breeding farms of Stavropol Krai. At the same time, the following tasks were set: to study the allele profile of prolactin (PRL), somatotropin (GH), pituitary transcription factor (Pit1) genes; to identify promising breeding significant genotypes in dairy cattle herds of Ayrshire, Yaroslavl, and red steppe breeds; to determine the share of the genotypes-carriers of alleles that mark high milk productivity. According to the results of genotyping, the breed features of allele profile of the genes controlling milk productivity (PRL, GH, Pit1) in the cows of Ayrshire, Yaroslavl, and red steppe breeds were determined for the first time; the genotypes-carriers of alleles marking high milk productivity were revealed; and it was found that the proportion of the genotypes important for breeding in the herds of dairy cattle bred in Stavropol Krai was rather low.