Geneticists have created tools and tests that help horse breeders select for healthy foals. Furthermore, access to the equine genome means scientists can examine common diseases and conditions and find ways to prevent (and one day treat) them.
Genetics is one of the many research focus areas at the University of Kentucky’s Gluck Equine Research Center. A subset of this emphasis area is the Animal Genetic Testing and Research Laboratory (AGTRL), which allows horse owners to investigate their horses’ DNA and offers a range of tests to the public, including those for genetic disorders and coat color patterns.
Early this year, frozen embryos that had undergone genetic testing were thawed and successfully transferred into the uteri of surrogate mares at Minitube International Center for Biotechnology in Mount Horeb, Wis.
The benefit of genetic testing of embryos is the ability to detect genetic diseases and traits prior to establishing a pregnancy. There are numerous diseases for which
Horses with allergic diseases, like recurrent airway obstruction, might have fewer parasites.
Koko the horse appeared to be a typical mare, but when she began acting overly aggressive and trying to mount her female counterparts, her owner became suspicious.
After a barrage of tests at the University of Guelph’s Ontario Ve
Equine metabolic syndrome is a devastating disease characterized by the three main features of obesity, insulin resistance, and laminitis. Certain breeds or individual horses are predisposed to EMS, and are often referred to as “easy keepers.” These
When Paul Megson attended the 2007 Keeneland November breeding stock sale with his young daughter, Valerie, he had his eye on a particular weanling that stood out from the hundreds of other catalog entries because of one obvious reason: his pur
Dr. Ernie Bailey explains how advances in equine genetics have benefited veterinary medicine.
What was the hottest news in equine veterinary medicine in 2009? During the popular Kester News Hour session at the annual American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Convention, three top veterinarians (who focus on equine reproduction
Researchers and graduate students from the University of Kentucky’s (UK) Gluck Equine Research Center attended the annual Plant and Animal Genome Conference (PAG), held Jan. 9 through 13 in San Diego, Calif., to share equine genomic researc
Irish researchers have found that horses with a specific mutation in the gene called myostatin (MSTN) have improved athletic performance.
“A variety of mammalian species with specific MSTN variants have characteris
The world’s first foal from a biopsied and vitrified embryo transferred into a surrogate mare was born Jan. 27, 2010, at Minitube International Center for Biotechnology in Mount Horeb, Wisc. The procedure used to create the filly provides ho
Dr. Mats Troedsson of the University of Kentucky discusses a new procedure that could impact the heritability of genetic diseases. (4:17)
Four researchers from the University of Kentucky (UK) Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center and a faculty member in UK’s Department of Computer Science were among 58 co-authors of a research article published Nov. 6 in Science that reported the first complete sequencing and assembly of the horse genome.
Professors Jim Mickelson, PhD, and Stephanie Valberg, DVM, PhD, of the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine are among the authors of “Genome Sequence, Comparative Analysis, and Population Genetics of the Domestic Horse,” to be published in the Nov. 6 issue of the journal Science.
Gluck Equine Research Center’s Dan Howe, PhD, has received a $500,000 grant from the USDA-CSREES Competitive Grants Program to conduct a Sarcocystis neurona genome project.
Stay on top of the most recent Horse Health news with
