Omics Technologies in Livestock Improvement: From Selection to Breeding Decisions

An understanding of animal health and production is becoming increasingly necessary since the global demand for food is expected to increase hugely in the coming decades. The production of animals with desired traits is therefore prerequisite. This challenge poses an uphill task of meeting the future requirements of animal products from static livestock population due to its tough competition with the exploding human population and other environmental factors. The strategy, therefore, should be to target vertical growth (increasing productivity) rather than expanding the population to meet the requirements. Improving livestock productivity will require a better understanding of the structure and function of genes and genomes and how they influence productive traits in animals so that appropriate selection and breeding decisions can be implemented to improve the performance of livestock.

Substantial advances have been made over the past decades through the application of molecular genetics and the identification of markers and chromosomal regions that contain quantitative trait loci affecting important livestock traits and has provided opportunities to enhance livestock improvement through genomic breeding. The extra responses to selection using omics approaches like genome-wide and epigenome-wide association studies have resulted in great optimism for the use of whole genetic information of an animal in industry breeding programs. Indeed, advanced omics approaches (genomic, proteomic, metabolomics and epigenomic data) can be used towards improving breeder selection programs, the quality of meat and dairy products and animal health to contribute towards greater sustainability and productivity.

Genomic selection is being considered as a success story that has potentially contributed to genetic improvement in livestock not only in terms of production but also in other functional trait complexes linked to health and animal welfare. However, it is worth mentioning that we are still in the beginning phase of using these technologies for exploration and improvement of the genetic worth of livestock.

The goal of the Research Topic is to highlight the success stories and potential research findings involved in livestock production using state-of-the-art omics technologies which can be helpful in devising strategies for their improvement. Potential topics should be limited to the areas of genomics (coding and non-RNA), functional genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, genome-wide association studies, epigenetics, phenomics, metagenomics, and metabolomics. Types of articles include Original Research (full length and short communications), Systematic Reviews, Reviews, Mini-reviews, Methods, Brief Research Reports and Technology & Code Reports.