The Pelibuey sheep has adaptability to climatic variations, resistance to parasites, and good maternal ability, whereas some ewes present multiple births, which increases the litter size in farm sheep. The litter size in some wool sheep breeds is associated with the presence of mutations, mainly in the family of the transforming growth factor β (TGF-β) genes. To explore genetic mechanisms underlying the variation in litter size, we conducted a genome-wide association study in two groups of Pelibuey sheep (multiparous sheep with two lambs per birth vs. uniparous sheep with a single lamb at birth) using the OvineSNP50 BeadChip. We identified a total of 57 putative SNPs markers (p < 3.0 × 10⁻³, Bonferroni correction). The candidate genes that may be associated with litter size in Pelibuey sheep are CLSTN2, MTMR2, DLG1, CGA, ABCG5, TRPM6, and HTR1E. Genomic regions were also identified that contain three quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for aseasonal reproduction (ASREP), milk yield (MY), and body weight (BW). These results allowed us to identify SNPs associated with genes that could be involved in the reproductive process related to prolificacy.

The Pelibuey sheep (Ovis aries) is an indigenous breed distributed in the tropical regions of Mexico. The prolificacy of this sheep is on average from 1 to 1.5 lambs, being an important breeding characteristic that owners seek to increase with the purpose of economic improvements. New-generation RNA sequencing technology has been used to identify the genes that are expressed in the ovarian tissue of sheep that have two or more lambs per parturition, as well as to elucidate the metabolic pathways that are affected by the expression of these genes, with the purpose of better understanding the prolificacy in the sheep. In the present study, the transcriptional expression of multiparous and uniparous sheep was compared using RNA sequencing. Multiparous (M group) and uniparous (U group) sheep that had a genealogical record for three generations (M, n = 5 and U, n = 5) were selected. RNA was extracted from ovarian tissue and subsequently used to prepare the libraries that were sequenced using the Illumina NextSeq500 platform. A total of 31,575 genes were detected from the transcriptomic analysis of which 4908 were significantly expressed (p-value ≤ 0.001) in the ovary of sheep. Subsequently, a second filter was carried out to evaluate the false discovery rate (FDR) and select those genes with p-values ≤ 0.05 and values of expression ≥ 1 (log2), obtaining 354 differential expressed genes (DEG): 120 genes up-regulated and 234 genes down-regulated in the group M with respect to the group U. Through Gene Ontology (GO) and metabolic analysis, we obtained information on the function of differentially expressed genes, and its importance in the reproduction of multiparous sheep. This result suggest that genes identified in the present study participate in the development of the final stages of follicles.

Leaf share, plant age and growth season are often overlooked as modifiers of the biomass quality in energy crops. The current work studied the effect of the given factors on the biomass yield and the biomass quality in Elephant grass CT115, intended for bioethanol production, in Veracruz, Mexico. Two seasons per year, 5 months each, were tracked on a 2-weeks basis. The climate is warm wet with summer rains, 1,142 mm of annual rainfall, and 26 °C monthly temperature. From day 56 of the wet season or from day 84 of the dry season, stems accumulated 12 or 6 Mg ha⁻¹, respectively, while green leaves increased only 1 Mg. Higher biomass quality was recorded for the leaf fraction, or for the wet season regrowth. For instance, lignin contained in stems meant twice that of leaves, whereas stems recorded 20% less lignin in the wet season as compared to the dry season. Despite holocellulose being similar between fractions or seasons, hemicellulose and cellulose showed inverse correlation, while lignin and cellulose contents were directly correlated in stems. Increasing the annual harvest of green leaves will improve biomass quality, which is known to increase biodegradability and might improve the annual ethanol yield.

Understanding the functional mechanisms of genes influencing economically important traits in the domestic pig is essential for optimizing marker-assisted selection (MAS). This study aimed to characterize the biological functions, molecular mechanisms, and metabolic pathways of genes associated with morphological, productive, reproductive, and carcass quality traits through a functional bioinformatics approach. Genes were compiled from 116 peer-reviewed studies published between 2000 and 2024, and subsequently grouped according to trait. A de novo functional bioinformatics analysis was performed on this dataset. Functional enrichment analysis was conducted using DAVID and the clusterProfiler package in R, applying FDR correction (≤0.05). Protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks were explored using STRING. No individual gene was consistently reported with high frequency. Among the most frequently reported genes were VRTN (17 studies) for teat number, HOMER1 (3 studies) for leg strength, and BMPR1B (3 studies) for litter size. Enriched GO terms included processes such as positive regulation of transcription (GO:0045944), chondrocyte differentiation (GO:0032331), and SMAD signaling (GO:0060391; an FDR = 7.34 × 10⁻⁷). The PPI networks revealed key genes involved in signaling and immune regulation. In conclusion, this bioinformatics analysis provides an integrated functional overview of the genes underlying key economic traits in pigs, identifying pleiotropic pathways such as SMAD/TGF-β signaling, which supports the development of more effective MAS strategies in pig breeding programs.

El proceso de crecimiento y nalización de corderos machos en estabulación con dietas integrales es una práctica de producción que se usa en la región tropical. Sin embargo, el alto costo de los ingredientes utilizados para elaborar alimentos de tipo comercial limita la rentabilidad de este sistema de producción. Por lo que es importante considerar el uso de ingredientes con disponibilidad regional para elaborar alimentos para ovinos. Entre los diversos in- gredientes se encuentran las semillas de Canavalia ensiformis, cuyo contenido en proteína cruda y energía metabolizable las hace atractiva como ingrediente proteínico; pero este tipo de semillas poseen diversos factores antinutricionales que limitan su incorporación de forma extensiva en los programas de alimentación de ovinos. La presente revisión muestra resultados que se han obtenido en la e ciencia de crecimiento de ovinos alojados en clima cálido húmedo alimentados con dietas que incluyen harina de semillas de canavalia. Se destacan los cambios que ocurren en la población de mi- crobios del rumen y en la degradación de la materia seca y proteína cruda de semilla de canavalia. Adicionalmente, se incluye la necesidad de generar conocimiento sobre la aplicación de procesos físico-químicos y biológicos que permitan utilizar las semillas de canavalia en la alimentación de los ovinos de manera sustentable y sin riesgos para su salud.

Heritability ( h ² ) is a key parameter in animal breeding, but its magnitude and consistency across pure‐bred (PB) and cross‐bred (CB) pig populations remain poorly understood. This study aimed to compare heritability estimates between PB and CB populations for economically relevant traits through a systematic review and meta‐analysis. A total of 28 studies (75 independent h ² estimates) were identified through searches in PubMed, Mendeley, Springer, ScienceDirect and Google Scholar (2000–2024). Multilevel random‐effects models with logit transformation were applied. Traits were grouped into reproductive, growth, conformation and carcass categories. Reproductive traits showed low heritability (e.g., litter size: 0.06 in PB and 0.20 in CB; number born alive [NBA]: 0.07 in CB), whereas growth and carcass traits exhibited moderate values (e.g., average daily gain: 0.21 in PB and 0.31 in CB; intramuscular fat: 0.31 in PB and 0.29 in CB; pH: 0.23–0.26). Meta‐regression did not detect a significant effect of population type ( β = 0.124, p = 0.630), whereas studies accounting for non‐additive genetic effects showed significantly different heritability estimates (QM = 4.35, p = 0.037), and high heterogeneity was observed across traits ( I ² > 90%). These results indicate that cross‐breeding does not systematically increase additive heritability. Instead, differences depend on trait type, likely reflecting differences in genetic architecture and the relative contribution of additive and non‐additive genetic effects. Overall, these findings highlight the importance of population‐specific genetic evaluations and context‐dependent breeding strategies in pig production, supporting the complementary interpretation of heritability and pure‐bred–cross‐bred genetic correlation (rPC) within Combined Cross‐bred and Pure‐bred Selection (CCPS) programmes.