It is generally accepted that domestication of pigs took place in multiple locations across Eurasia; the breeds that originated in Europe and Asia have been well studied. However, the genetic structure of pig breeds from Russia, Belorussia, Kazakhstan and Ukraine, which represent large geographical areas and diverse climatic zones in Eurasia, remains largely unknown. This study provides the first genomic survey of 170 pigs representing 13 breeds from Russia, Belorussia, Kazakhstan and Ukraine; 288 pigs from six Chinese and seven European breeds were also included for comparison. Our findings show that the 13 novel breeds tested derived mainly from European pigs through the complex admixture of Large White, Landrace, Duroc, Hampshire and other breeds, and that they display no geographic structure based on genetic distance. We also found a considerable Asian contribution to the miniature Siberian pigs (Minisib breed) from Russia. Apart from the Minisib, Urzhum, Ukrainian Spotted Steppe and Ukrainian White Steppe breeds, which may have undergone intensive inbreeding, the breeds included in this study showed relatively high genetic diversity and low levels of homozygosity compared to the Chinese indigenous pig breeds. This study provides the first genomic overview of the population structure and genetic diversity of 13 representative pig breeds from Russia, Belorussia, Kazakhstan and Ukraine; this information will be useful for the preservation and management of these breeds.

This paper provides a relatively complete description of the genesis, formation conditions, and the genealogic and genetic structure of the ICG minipig population. It shows the present state of this group of animals and their unique features (in comparison to other minipigs). The data of the literature and experimental data collected in a population of minipigs from the Institute of Cytology and Genetics, Siberian Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences (ICG SB RAS) in 1990–1992 (population establishment) and 2012–2013 (present time) is used.

The article considers methods used for breeding and selection of mini-pigs in the ICG, SB RAS, the theoretical justifcation of these methods and the purposes for which they are used. We showed the genealogical structure of the herd and the contribution of inbreeding to the genetic similarity of modern representatives of genealogical lines and families with the founders of the breeding group. We characterized the phenotypic diversity of the ICG mini-pigs in colours, weight categories, types of growth and features of constitution. We listed measures supporting genetic diversity in the herd of the ICG mini-pigs. We explained the possibility of using similarity indices calculated by using portions of the ancestors’ blood (genome) for the selection of parental pairs and the evaluation of genetic consolidation of the herd. We showed that the average index of similarity between males and females, calculated by using portions of the ancestors’ blood, in the ICG minipigs is close to the limit value. It turned out that effective evaluation of the genetic potential of mini-pigs in growth rate and fnal size of individuals is only possible under the condition of a rich and full feeding of young animals. The time scale of estimation of growth of live weight of the ICG mini-pigs for three weight categories allocated in the selection group is presented. The types of growth and development of mini-pigs observed in the ICG breeding group and the type inherent to individuals in the small weight category are considered. We justifed the minimum live weight of a newborn piglet in the herd of the ICG mini-pigs. Values of optimal multiple pregnancy for the three categories of ICG mini-pig sows were calculated.

Background and Aim: The aim of any breeding process is to create a herd based on certain parameters that reflect an ideal animal vision. Targeted herding involves selecting the source of breeding material to be imported from another country. Therefore, there is a problem in selecting a breeding material importer to rapidly form a uterine canopy with the required properties. The purpose of this study was to evaluate a set of predictive milk productivity traits in Holstein cattle across countries. Materials and Methods: This research was based on records of 819,358 recorded animals from 28 countries born after January 1, 2018, from open databases. We used the Euclidean metric to construct dendrograms characterizing the similarity of countries according to the complex milk productivity traits of the daughters of bulls. The Ward method was used to minimize intracluster variance when forming clusters and constructing the corresponding diagrams. Principal component analysis was used to reduce dimensionality and eliminate the effect of multicollinearity. The principal components were selected using the Kaiser–Harris criteria. Results: A ranking of multidimensional complex milk productivity traits in different countries over the past 5 years was performed. A group of leading countries led by the USA was established according to the studied indicators, and the possible reasons for such a division into groups were described. Conclusion: The pressure of purposeful artificial selection prevails in comparison with the pressure of natural selection concerning milk productivity traits in a certain group of countries, which allows specialists to choose suppliers when buying breeding animals and materials. The findings are based solely on data from recorded animals, which may not represent the entire breed population within each country, especially in regions where record-keeping may be inconsistent. It is expected that further studies will include regional data from large enterprises not part of Interbull, with mandatory verification and validation. An important element of such work is seen as the ability to compare the milk productivity of populations from different countries using a different scale, as well as studying the differentiation of countries by other selection traits of dairy. Keywords: breeding material, cattle productivity, dairy productivity traits, Holstein cattle.

This article provides an overview of some problems of the breeding and reproduction of laboratory minipigs. The most obvious of these are the lack of centralized accounting of breeding groups, uniform selection standards for reproduction and evaluation of breeding animals, as well as minimizing the accumulation of fitness-reducing mutations and maintaining genetic diversity. According to the latest estimates, there are at least 30 breeding groups of mini-pigs systematically used as laboratory animals in the world. Among them, there are both breed formations represented by several colonies, and breeding groups consisting of a single herd. It was shown that the main selection strategy is selection for the live weight of adults of 50–80 kg and the adaptation of animals to a specific type of biomedical experiments. For its implementation in the breeding of foreign mini-pigs, selection by live weight is practiced at 140- and 154-day-old age. It was indicated that different herds of mini-pigs have their own breeding methods to counteract inbred depression and maintain genetic diversity. Examples are the maximization of coat color phenotypes, the cyclical system of matching parent pairs, and the structuring of herds into subpopulations. In addition, in the breeding of foreign mini-pigs, molecular genetic methods are used to monitor heterozygosity. Every effort is made to keep the number of inbred crosses in the breeding of laboratory mini-pigs to a minimum, which is not always possible due to their small number. It is estimated that to avoid close inbreeding, the number of breeding groups should be at least 28 individuals, including boars of at least 4 genealogical lines and at least 4 families of sows. The accumulation of genetic cargo in herds of mini-pigs takes place, but the harmful effect is rather the result of erroneous decisions of breeders. Despite the fact that when breeding a number of mini-pigs, the goal was to complete the herds with exclusively white animals, in most breeding groups there is a polymorphism in the phenotype of the coat color.

Настоящая работа имеет феноменологический, чисто описательный характер. В ней рассмотрен полиморфизм окрасок минисвиней селекционной группы Института цитологии и генетики Сибирского отделения Российской академии наук (ИЦиГ) и высказаны некоторые предположения о генетической природе этого разнообразия. В стаде мини-свиней ИЦиГ присутствуют окраска дикого типа (агути), черно-пестрая, черная и белая масти. Все перечисленные масти имеют варианты, в том числе ранее в литературе не описанные, различия между которыми являются генетически обусловленными. Кроме этого, у мини-свиней ИЦиГ присутствуют варианты масти, присущие только гетерозиготным особям, а также описанная только у примитивных домашних свиней архаичная серая масть. Сопоставление наблюдаемых в селекционной группе фенотипов масти с литературными данными показало, что полиморфны локусы EDNRB, KIT, KITLG и MC1R, а мономорфны – ASIP, OCA2 и TYRP1. Таким образом, локусы, которые контролируют наиболее распространенные масти домашних свиней, полиморфны, а локусы, контролирующие редкие или относительно редкие масти, мономорфны. Исследование позволило выдвинуть некоторые предположения, касающиеся особенностей генетической детерминации фенотипов масти, наблюдаемых в изучаемой селекционной группе. В том числе это предположения о генетическом контроле ювенильных окрасок домашних свиней. Наблюдения, проведенные в стаде мини-свиней селекции ИЦиГ, позволили изучить и описать особенности возрастного изменения одного из вариантов черно-пестрой масти, когда первоначально черно-пестрые по кирпичному фону новорожденные поросята в возрасте одного года имеют серый чалый фон, формируемый смесью белых и черных волос. Кроме того, было показано, что с помощью технических средств черно-пестрость может быть обнаружена и на черном фоне.