The project aims to infer recent population history in Swedish Holstein and Red cattle, using contemporary samples of cows from dairy farms. To do this accurately, the project will also explore population structure within and between the farms.
The project aims to infer recent population history in Swedish Holstein and Red cattle, using contemporary samples of cows from dairy farms. To do this accurately, the project will also explore population structure within and between the farms.
The effective population size describes the genetic size of a population and allows predictions about how quickly it will lose diversity and increase in inbreeding. Therefore, it is a key parameter in population genetics and management of genetic diversity. The genetic history of a population can be described by its effective population size over time. Previous research has inferred the population history of Swedish cattle based on historical samples, and based on the structure of the breeding program. The question is what the population history looks like in cows on farms.
The project will use genotype data from the SLU Gigacow dairy cattle data infrastructure to infer recent population history of Holstein and Swedish Red cattle using the GONE software. Population genetic descriptive statistics and visualisations will be used to explore population structure within and between farms and cluster samples before inference. Population genetic simulation may be used to check the performance of methods. Resulting population histories will be compared to previously published estimates.
Suitable for: Animal Science, Bioinformatics.