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Kay AD, Lager Z, Bhebheza L, Heinen‐Kay JL. Integrating remote international experience and community engagement into course-based animal behavior research. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e9721. [PMID: 36644705 PMCID: PMC9831970 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9721] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2022] [Revised: 12/18/2022] [Accepted: 12/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Human-centered, active-learning approaches can help students develop core competencies in biology and other STEM fields, including the ability to conduct research, use quantitative reasoning, communicate across disciplinary boundaries, and connect science education to pressing social and environmental challenges. Promising approaches for incorporating active learning into biology courses include the use of course-based research, community engagement, and international experiences. Disruption to higher education due to the COVID-19 pandemic made each of these approaches more challenging or impossible to execute. Here, we describe a scalable course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) for an animal behavior course that integrates research and community engagement in a remote international experience. Students in courses at two U.S. universities worked with community partners to analyze the behavior of African goats grazing near informal settlements in Western Cape, South Africa. Partners established a relationship with goat herders, and then created 2-min videos of individual goats that differed in criteria (goat sex and time of day) specified by students. Students worked in small groups to choose dependent variables, and then compared goat behavior across criteria using a factorial design. In postcourse surveys, students from both universities indicated overall enthusiasm for the experience. In general, students indicated that the laboratory provided them with "somewhat more" of a research-based experience compared with biology laboratories they had taken of similar length, and "somewhat more" to "much more" of a community-engagement and international experience. Educational benefits were complemented by the fact that international educational partners facing economic hardship due to the pandemic received payment for services. Future iterations of the CURE can focus on goat behavior differences across ecological conditions to help herders increase production in the face of continued environmental and social challenges. More generally, applying the structure of this CURE could facilitate mutually beneficial collaborations with residents of under-resourced areas around the world.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam D. Kay
- Biology DepartmentUniversity of St. ThomasSt. PaulMinnesotaUSA
| | - Zach Lager
- Sibanye South AfricaStellenboschSouth Africa
| | | | - Justa L. Heinen‐Kay
- Natural Sciences DepartmentMetropolitan State UniversitySt. PaulMinnesotaUSA
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Magoro AM, Mtileni B, Hadebe K, Zwane A. Assessment of Genetic Diversity and Conservation in South African Indigenous Goat Ecotypes: A Review. Animals (Basel) 2022; 12:ani12233353. [PMID: 36496874 PMCID: PMC9735466 DOI: 10.3390/ani12233353] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2022] [Revised: 11/21/2022] [Accepted: 11/25/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Goats were amongst the first livestock to be domesticated more than 10,000 years ago for their meat, milk, skin, and fiber. They were introduced to Southern Africa by migrating nations from Central Africa to the south. Due to local adaptation to the different agro-ecological zones and selection, indigenous goats are identified as ecotypes within the indigenous veld goat breed. Their ability to thrive in a resource-limited production system and in challenging environmental conditions makes them valuable animal resources for small-scale and emerging farmers. They play important roles in household agriculture and cultural activities as well as in poverty alleviation. Studies have described the phenotypic and genetic variations in indigenous goats, targeting the major goat-producing regions and the breeds of South Africa. In turn, information is restricted to certain breeds and regions, and the experimental design is often not adequate to inform the conservation status and priorities in changing environments. Advances in genomics technologies have availed more opportunities for the assessment of the biodiversity, demographic histories, and detection regions associated with local adaptation. These technologies are essential for breeding and conservation strategies for sustainable production for food security. This review focuses on the status of indigenous goats in South Africa and the application of genomics technologies for characterization, with emphasis on prioritization for conservation and sustainable utilization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aletta Matshidiso Magoro
- Department of Animal Sciences, Tshwane University of Technology, Pretoria 0001, South Africa
- Agricultural Research Council, Animal Production, Irene 0062, South Africa
- Correspondence:
| | - Bohani Mtileni
- Department of Animal Sciences, Tshwane University of Technology, Pretoria 0001, South Africa
| | - Khanyisile Hadebe
- Agricultural Research Council, Biotechnology Platform, Onderstepoort 0110, South Africa
| | - Avhashoni Zwane
- Agricultural Research Council, Animal Production, Irene 0062, South Africa
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Ncube KT, Dzomba EF, Rosen BD, Schroeder SG, Van Tassell CP, Muchadeyi FC. Differential gene expression and identification of growth-related genes in the pituitary gland of South African goats. Front Genet 2022; 13:811193. [PMID: 36072660 PMCID: PMC9442344 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2022.811193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2021] [Accepted: 06/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Growth and carcass quality are economically important traits in goat production. This study investigated differentially expressed genes from the caprine pituitary gland transcriptome of South African indigenous goat breeds of varying growth performances and carcass quality parameters. Tissues were harvested from the pituitary gland of three South African Boer goats and three village ecotype goats all raised under similar conditions simulating intensive commercial production systems. Three additional tissues were harvested from village ecotype goats that were raised extensively on village farms. Between breed differences were investigated by comparing differential gene expression among three South African Boer and three village goats that were both raised under intensive commercial production system at a research farm. Within-breed differences were investigated by comparing differential gene expression among three village goats raised under extensive conditions (on-farm in Pella, S.A. village farming community) and three village goats raised under intensive commercial production system (at ARC research farm in Pretoria, South Africa. Total RNA was isolated from the pituitary gland of 36-week-old animals (n = 9) and sequenced individually in triplicates. An average of 28,298,512 trimmed, and quality-controlled reads/animal were mapped to the goat genome (Capra_hircus.ARS1.94) using HiSat2 software. Transcript assembly and quantification yielded 104 differentially expressed genes for village goats raised under extensive system and 62 for village goats raised under the intensive production system at the false discovery rate (FRD) of ≤0.05 and a fold change of ≥2. Growth-related genes such as POU3F4 and TSHZ1 were highly expressed within breeds raised under both production systems. Conversely, growth-related genes such as FGFR2 and SMPX genes were highly expressed between breeds raised under similar production systems. Ballgown analysis revealed a high expression of GH1 and IGF1 in the intensively raised compared to extensively raised goats. Both genes were also highly expressed in the village goats when compared to the Boer. The differential gene expression data provided insights into genes and molecular mechanisms associated with growth and growth development in goats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keabetswe T. Ncube
- Biotechnology Platform, Agricultural Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa
- Discipline of Genetics, School of Life Sciences, University of Kwa-Zulu Natal, Scottsville, South Africa
| | - Edgar F. Dzomba
- Discipline of Genetics, School of Life Sciences, University of Kwa-Zulu Natal, Scottsville, South Africa
| | - Ben D. Rosen
- Animal Genomics and Improvement Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD, United States
| | - Stephen G. Schroeder
- Animal Genomics and Improvement Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD, United States
| | - Curt P. Van Tassell
- Animal Genomics and Improvement Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD, United States
| | - Farai. C. Muchadeyi
- Biotechnology Platform, Agricultural Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa
- *Correspondence: Farai. C. Muchadeyi,
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Breeding practices and trait preferences of goat keepers at Lepelle-Nkumpi Local Municipality, South Africa: implication for the design of breeding programmes. Trop Anim Health Prod 2022; 54:68. [PMID: 35044543 PMCID: PMC8770375 DOI: 10.1007/s11250-022-03078-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2021] [Accepted: 01/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Identification of breeding practices and trait preferences by livestock keepers for the selection of breeding animals to be parents of the next generations is the crucial step to the successful implementation of community-based breeding program (CBBPs). The study aimed to detect breeding practices and trait preferences by farmers at Lepelle-Nkumpi Local Municipality, South Africa to determine their relevance in establishing a CBBP. A well-structured questionnaire was designed and administered to 183 randomly selected goat keepers from four villages. Chi-square statistics were used to compare categorical variables among villages. Socio-economic factors and reasons for keeping goats were not significantly different (P > 0.05) between the four villages. Methods of controlling mating, reasons for not controlling mating, keeping breeding bucks, source of breeding bucks, reasons for culling, and culling methods were significantly different (P < 0.05) among villages. The most common trait preferences of goat keepers among the surveyed villages were twinning ability, mothering ability, and body size in breeding does, while in breeding bucks were mating ability, growth rate, and body size. The results from this study are useful for designing CBBPs for goat production in the communal areas of Lepelle-Nkumpi Local Municipality.
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Cortellari M, Barbato M, Talenti A, Bionda A, Carta A, Ciampolini R, Ciani E, Crisà A, Frattini S, Lasagna E, Marletta D, Mastrangelo S, Negro A, Randi E, Sarti FM, Sartore S, Soglia D, Liotta L, Stella A, Ajmone-Marsan P, Pilla F, Colli L, Crepaldi P. The climatic and genetic heritage of Italian goat breeds with genomic SNP data. Sci Rep 2021; 11:10986. [PMID: 34040003 PMCID: PMC8154919 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-89900-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2020] [Accepted: 04/29/2021] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Local adaptation of animals to the environment can abruptly become a burden when faced with rapid climatic changes such as those foreseen for the Italian peninsula over the next 70 years. Our study investigates the genetic structure of the Italian goat populations and links it with the environment and how genetics might evolve over the next 50 years. We used one of the largest national datasets including > 1000 goats from 33 populations across the Italian peninsula collected by the Italian Goat Consortium and genotyped with over 50 k markers. Our results showed that Italian goats can be discriminated in three groups reflective of the Italian geography and its geo-political situation preceding the country unification around two centuries ago. We leveraged the remarkable genetic and geographical diversity of the Italian goat populations and performed landscape genomics analysis to disentangle the relationship between genotype and environment, finding 64 SNPs intercepting genomic regions linked to growth, circadian rhythm, fertility, and inflammatory response. Lastly, we calculated the hypothetical future genotypic frequencies of the most relevant SNPs identified through landscape genomics to evaluate their long-term effect on the genetic structure of the Italian goat populations. Our results provide an insight into the past and the future of the Italian local goat populations, helping the institutions in defining new conservation strategy plans that could preserve their diversity and their link to local realities challenged by climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matteo Cortellari
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie e Ambientali - Produzione, Territorio, Agroenergia, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Celoria 2, 20133, Milan, Italy
| | - Mario Barbato
- Dipartimento di Scienze Animali, della Nutrizione e degli Alimenti and BioDNA Centro di ricerca sulla Biodiversità e sul DNA Antico, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Via Emilia Parmense 84, 29122, Piacenza, Italy
| | - Andrea Talenti
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie e Ambientali - Produzione, Territorio, Agroenergia, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Celoria 2, 20133, Milan, Italy.
- The Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Campus, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, UK.
| | - Arianna Bionda
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie e Ambientali - Produzione, Territorio, Agroenergia, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Celoria 2, 20133, Milan, Italy
| | - Antonello Carta
- Unità di Ricerca di Genetica e Biotecnologie, Agris Sardegna, 07100, Sassari, Italy
| | - Roberta Ciampolini
- Dipartimento di Scienze Veterinarie, Università di Pisa, Viale delle Piagge 2, 56124, Pisa, Italy
| | - Elena Ciani
- Dipartimento di Bioscienze Biotecnologie e Biofarmaceutica, Università degli Studi di Bari, Via Orabona 4, 70126, Bari, Italy
| | - Alessandra Crisà
- Consiglio per la ricerca in agricoltura e l'analisi dell'economia agraria (CREA) - Research Centre for Animal Production and Acquaculture, 00015, Monterotondo, Rome, Italy
| | - Stefano Frattini
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie e Ambientali - Produzione, Territorio, Agroenergia, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Celoria 2, 20133, Milan, Italy
| | - Emiliano Lasagna
- Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Perugia, 06121, Perugia, Italy
| | - Donata Marletta
- Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Catania, Via Valdisavoia 5, 95123, Catania, Italy
| | - Salvatore Mastrangelo
- Dipartimento Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Forestali, University of Palermo, 90128, Palermo, Italy
| | - Alessio Negro
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie e Ambientali - Produzione, Territorio, Agroenergia, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Celoria 2, 20133, Milan, Italy
| | - Ettore Randi
- Department of Chemistry and Bioscience, Faculty of Engineering and Science, University of Aalborg, Aalborg, Denmark
| | - Francesca M Sarti
- Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Perugia, 06121, Perugia, Italy
| | - Stefano Sartore
- Dipartimento di Scienze Veterinarie, Università degli Studi di Torino, largo Braccini 2, 10095, Grugliasco, Italy
| | - Dominga Soglia
- Dipartimento di Scienze Veterinarie, Università degli Studi di Torino, largo Braccini 2, 10095, Grugliasco, Italy
| | - Luigi Liotta
- Dipartimento di Scienze Veterinarie, University of Messina, Messina, Italy
| | - Alessandra Stella
- Institute of Biology and Biotechnology in Agriculture, National Research Council (CNR), Milan, Italy
| | - Paolo Ajmone-Marsan
- Dipartimento di Scienze Animali, della Nutrizione e degli Alimenti and BioDNA Centro di ricerca sulla Biodiversità e sul DNA Antico, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Via Emilia Parmense 84, 29122, Piacenza, Italy
| | - Fabio Pilla
- Dipartimento Agricoltura, Ambiente e Alimenti Universitá degli Studi del Molise, 86100, Campobasso, Italy
| | - Licia Colli
- Dipartimento di Scienze Animali, della Nutrizione e degli Alimenti and BioDNA Centro di ricerca sulla Biodiversità e sul DNA Antico, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Via Emilia Parmense 84, 29122, Piacenza, Italy
| | - Paola Crepaldi
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie e Ambientali - Produzione, Territorio, Agroenergia, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Celoria 2, 20133, Milan, Italy
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Recent land use and management changes decouple the adaptation of livestock diversity to the environment. Sci Rep 2020; 10:21035. [PMID: 33273517 PMCID: PMC7713044 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-77878-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2020] [Accepted: 11/18/2020] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Native livestock breeds, i.e. those autochthonous to a specific region, are locally adapted domesticated animals that conserve genetic resources, guaranty food security and provide agroecosystem services. Native breeds are largely threatened worldwide by agricultural intensification and rural areas abandonment processes related to recent changes in production schemes and planning. Yet, our gap of knowledge regarding livestock breed-environment relationships may prevent the design of successful conservation measures. In this work, we analyse the links between livestock diversity -i.e. richness of native breeds- and a selection of environmental factors that express at broad scales, with a temporal perspective. We compare native breeds distributional patterns before and after the agricultural intensification, in the context of land-use change in mainland Spain. Our results confirm the existence of strong associations between the distribution of native livestock breeds and environmental factors. These links, however, weaken for contemporary distributions. In fact, changes in breed distribution reflect a shift towards more productive environments. Finally, we found that the areas having higher breed richness are undergoing land abandonment processes. Succeeding in the conservation of threatened native breeds will require going beyond merely genetic and production-oriented views. Ecological and sociocultural perspectives should also be accounted for as global change processes are determinant for livestock agrobiodiversity.
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Ncube KT, Hadebe K, Dzomba EF, Soma P, Frylinck L, Muchadeyi FC. Relationship between population genomic structure and growth profiles of South African goats under different production systems. Trop Anim Health Prod 2019; 52:1277-1286. [PMID: 31853786 DOI: 10.1007/s11250-019-02128-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2019] [Accepted: 10/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Goats play a major role in poor marginalized communities of South Africa for food security and socio-economic purposes. Majority of the goats are raised in villages with poor infrastructure and resources, therefore facing challenges that affect growth performance which leads to low mature weights. Investigating growth profiles will shed light on growth performances and will aid in goat improvement and selection. This study investigated the growth profiles and genomic structure of SA indigenous breeds raised in different production systems to unravel the genetic potential of indigenous goat populations. Live weights and morphological body measurements were collected from a total of 83 kids representing the commercial meat-producing SA Boer (n = 14); the indigenous veld goats (IVG) of NC Skilder (n = 14), Mbuzi (n = 13), and Xhosa lob (n = 14) raised under intensive systems; and nondescript village goat populations (n = 14) raised in intensive and others (n = 14) raised in extensive production systems. The remaining 72 of 83 phenotyped goats were genotyped using the Illumina Caprine SNP50K BeadChip. The SA Boer had a higher weight (28.96 ± 0.30 kg) gain as compared to other populations. The Mbuzi population was the smallest (14.83 ± 0.33 kg), while the village goats raised in Pella Village were relatively smaller (17.55 ± 0.37 kg) than those raised on the research farm (19.55 ± 0.36 kg). The study concluded that both genetics and management systems can lead to improved growth performance in goat production. The outputs of this study can be used to identify suitable breeds and potential genotypes for optimal growth and establish optimal goat management systems suitable for communal farmers for improved productivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- K T Ncube
- Biotechnology Platform, Agricultural Research Council, Private Bag X5, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa.,Discipline of Genetics, School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag X01, Scottsville, 3209, South Africa
| | - K Hadebe
- Biotechnology Platform, Agricultural Research Council, Private Bag X5, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa
| | - E F Dzomba
- Discipline of Genetics, School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag X01, Scottsville, 3209, South Africa
| | - P Soma
- Animal Production, Agricultural Research Council, Private Bag X2, Irene, 0062, South Africa
| | - L Frylinck
- Animal Production, Agricultural Research Council, Private Bag X2, Irene, 0062, South Africa
| | - F C Muchadeyi
- Biotechnology Platform, Agricultural Research Council, Private Bag X5, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa. .,Department of Life and Consumer Science, College of Agriculture and Environmental Science, University of South Africa, Private Bag X6, Florida, 1709, South Africa.
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