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Van Tassell CP, Rosen BD, Woodward-Greene MJ, Silverstein JT, Huson HJ, Sölkner J, Boettcher P, Rothschild MF, Mészáros G, Nakimbugwe HN, Gondwe TN, Muchadeyi FC, Nandolo W, Mulindwa HA, Banda LJ, Kaumbata W, Getachew T, Haile A, Soudre A, Ouédraogo D, Rischkowsky BA, Mwai AO, Dzomba EF, Nash O, Abegaz S, Masiga CW, Wurzinger M, Sayre BL, Stella A, Tosser-Klopp G, Sonstegard TS. The African Goat Improvement Network: a scientific group empowering smallholder farmers. Front Genet 2023; 14:1183240. [PMID: 37712066 PMCID: PMC10497955 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2023.1183240] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2023] [Accepted: 07/27/2023] [Indexed: 09/16/2023] Open
Abstract
The African Goat Improvement Network (AGIN) is a collaborative group of scientists focused on genetic improvement of goats in small holder communities across the African continent. The group emerged from a series of workshops focused on enhancing goat productivity and sustainability. Discussions began in 2011 at the inaugural workshop held in Nairobi, Kenya. The goals of this diverse group were to: improve indigenous goat production in Africa; characterize existing goat populations and to facilitate germplasm preservation where appropriate; and to genomic approaches to better understand adaptation. The long-term goal was to develop cost-effective strategies to apply genomics to improve productivity of small holder farmers without sacrificing adaptation. Genome-wide information on genetic variation enabled genetic diversity studies, facilitated improved germplasm preservation decisions, and provided information necessary to initiate large scale genetic improvement programs. These improvements were partially implemented through a series of community-based breeding programs that engaged and empowered local small farmers, especially women, to promote sustainability of the production system. As with many international collaborative efforts, the AGIN work serves as a platform for human capacity development. This paper chronicles the evolution of the collaborative approach leading to the current AGIN organization and describes how it builds capacity for sustained research and development long after the initial program funds are gone. It is unique in its effectiveness for simultaneous, multi-level capacity building for researchers, students, farmers and communities, and local and regional government officials. The positive impact of AGIN capacity building has been felt by participants from developing, as well as developed country partners.
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Affiliation(s)
- Curtis P. Van Tassell
- Animal Genomics and Improvement Laboratory, USDA Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville, MD, United States
| | - Benjamin D. Rosen
- Animal Genomics and Improvement Laboratory, USDA Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville, MD, United States
| | - M. Jennifer Woodward-Greene
- Animal Genomics and Improvement Laboratory, USDA Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville, MD, United States
- National Agricultural Library, USDA Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville, MD, United States
| | - Jeffrey T. Silverstein
- Office of National Programs, USDA Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville, MD, United States
| | - Heather J. Huson
- Department of Animal Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States
| | - Johann Sölkner
- Division of Livestock Sciences, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Paul Boettcher
- Animal Production and Health Division, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome, Italy
| | - Max F. Rothschild
- Department of Animal Science, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States
| | - Gábor Mészáros
- Division of Livestock Sciences, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Timothy N. Gondwe
- Department of Animal Science, Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - Farai C. Muchadeyi
- Biotechnology Platform, Agricultural Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Wilson Nandolo
- Department of Animal Science, Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | | | - Liveness J. Banda
- Department of Animal Science, Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - Wilson Kaumbata
- Department of Animal Science, Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - Tesfaye Getachew
- International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Aynalem Haile
- International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Albert Soudre
- Unité de Formation et de Recherches - Sciences et Technologies, Université Norbert ZONGO, Koudougou, Burkina Faso
| | | | | | | | - Edgar Farai Dzomba
- Discipline of Genetics, School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
| | - Oyekanmi Nash
- National Biotechnology Development Agency, Abuja, Nigeria
| | - Solomon Abegaz
- Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | | | - Maria Wurzinger
- Division of Livestock Sciences, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Brian L. Sayre
- Department of Biology, Virginia State University, Petersburg, VA, United States
| | - Alessandra Stella
- Institute of Agricultural Biology and Biotechnology (IBBA), Milano, Italy
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Nandolo W, Mészáros G, Wurzinger M, Banda LJ, Gondwe TN, Mulindwa HA, Nakimbugwe HN, Clark EL, Woodward-Greene MJ, Liu M, Liu GE, Van Tassell CP, Rosen BD, Sölkner J. Detection of copy number variants in African goats using whole genome sequence data. BMC Genomics 2021; 22:398. [PMID: 34051743 PMCID: PMC8164248 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-021-07703-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2020] [Accepted: 05/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Copy number variations (CNV) are a significant source of variation in the genome and are therefore essential to the understanding of genetic characterization. The aim of this study was to develop a fine-scaled copy number variation map for African goats. We used sequence data from multiple breeds and from multiple African countries. Results A total of 253,553 CNV (244,876 deletions and 8677 duplications) were identified, corresponding to an overall average of 1393 CNV per animal. The mean CNV length was 3.3 kb, with a median of 1.3 kb. There was substantial differentiation between the populations for some CNV, suggestive of the effect of population-specific selective pressures. A total of 6231 global CNV regions (CNVR) were found across all animals, representing 59.2 Mb (2.4%) of the goat genome. About 1.6% of the CNVR were present in all 34 breeds and 28.7% were present in all 5 geographical areas across Africa, where animals had been sampled. The CNVR had genes that were highly enriched in important biological functions, molecular functions, and cellular components including retrograde endocannabinoid signaling, glutamatergic synapse and circadian entrainment. Conclusions This study presents the first fine CNV map of African goat based on WGS data and adds to the growing body of knowledge on the genetic characterization of goats. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12864-021-07703-1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wilson Nandolo
- University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria.,Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - Gábor Mészáros
- University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Maria Wurzinger
- University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Liveness J Banda
- Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - Timothy N Gondwe
- Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | | | | | - Emily L Clark
- The Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK
| | - M Jennifer Woodward-Greene
- Animal Genomics and Improvement Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Beltsville, MD, USA.,National Agricultural Library, USDA-ARS, Beltsville, MD, USA
| | - Mei Liu
- Animal Genomics and Improvement Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Beltsville, MD, USA
| | | | - George E Liu
- Animal Genomics and Improvement Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Beltsville, MD, USA
| | | | - Benjamin D Rosen
- Animal Genomics and Improvement Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Beltsville, MD, USA.
| | - Johann Sölkner
- University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
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