Should we aim for genetic improvement in host resistance or tolerance to infectious disease?

Should we aim for genetic improvement in host resistance or tolerance to infectious disease?
Author :
Publisher : Frontiers E-books
Total Pages : 100
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9782889191055
ISBN-13 : 2889191052
Rating : 4/5 (052 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Should we aim for genetic improvement in host resistance or tolerance to infectious disease? by : Andrea B. Doeschl-Wilson

Download or read book Should we aim for genetic improvement in host resistance or tolerance to infectious disease? written by Andrea B. Doeschl-Wilson and published by Frontiers E-books. This book was released on with total page 100 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Recent advances in quantitative genetic and genomic studies have shed light on the important role of genetic control strategies for reducing disease risk and severity in livestock populations. There are two alternative host defence strategies to infectious pathogens that could be enhanced by genetic selection: improvement of host resistance versus improvement of host tolerance to infectious pathogens. Resistance refers to mechanisms that restrict the reproduction rate of a pathogen within a host, whilst tolerance mechanisms focus on minimising the damage that a pathogen inflicts on the host. Both strategies may have a similar impact on individual host fitness and performance, but can have contrasting effects on population performance and disease risk and severity. For example, improving host resistance may result in successful eradication of a disease from a livestock population, whereas disease eradication may be difficult if hosts are tolerant as these can harbour the pathogen without showing obvious or severe symptoms. On the other hand, it has been argued that increasing host resistance would fuel the arms race between host and pathogen and stimulate pathogen evolution towards higher virulence. Increasing tolerance, in contrast, imposes no or little selection pressure on the pathogen. Further, whereas disease resistance mechanisms may be specific to a particular pathogen (e.g. development of specific antibodies), tolerance mechanisms that repair damaged tissues are associated with the host rather than the pathogen, and are thus more likely to be generic to a range of pathogens. Hence, improving tolerance may be beneficial if individuals are exposed to a variety of pathogens or pathogen strains, and disease eradication has proven difficult. In contrast to evolutionary biology and plant breeding, animal breeding has only recently started to seriously consider a distinction between disease resistance and tolerance and their consequences. However, a deeper understanding of the underlying mechanisms and implications of improving either or both of the host defence mechanisms on future disease risk and severity is urgently needed by animal scientists, veterinarians and breeders to make informed decisions that help to maintain healthy livestock populations and guarantee food security. The topic ‘genetic improvement of disease resistance v tolerance’ would lend itself to research papers covering a variety of aspects that need to be considered, such as ‘how to obtain genetic parameter estimates and genomic breeding values related to disease resistance / tolerance’, ‘evidence for host genetic influence of resistance or tolerance’, ‘genetic, genomic and immunological understanding of resistance / tolerance mechanisms’, ‘epidemiological consequences of improving disease resistance / tolerance’. I believe that this research topic is both timely and relevant, and that sufficient knowledge is available across disciplines for composing valuable research / review articles that stimulate interest to a wide range of readers of Frontiers, and thus promote the growth of this journal.


Should we aim for genetic improvement in host resistance or tolerance to infectious disease? Related Books

Should we aim for genetic improvement in host resistance or tolerance to infectious disease?
Language: en
Pages: 100
Authors: Andrea B. Doeschl-Wilson
Categories:
Type: BOOK - Published: - Publisher: Frontiers E-books

GET EBOOK

Recent advances in quantitative genetic and genomic studies have shed light on the important role of genetic control strategies for reducing disease risk and se
Animal Genetics and Diseases: Advances in Farming and Livestock Systems
Language: en
Pages: 192
Authors: Mark S. Fife
Categories:
Type: BOOK - Published: 2020-02-14 - Publisher: Frontiers Media SA

GET EBOOK

The new Animal Genetics and Disease 2017 conference committee organized a Research Topic for the proceedings of this inaugural conference. The meeting brought t
Host and Microbe Adaptations in the Evolution of Immunity
Language: en
Pages: 254
Authors: Larry J. Dishaw
Categories:
Type: BOOK - Published: 2019-12-31 - Publisher: Frontiers Media SA

GET EBOOK

The evolution of metazoans has been accompanied by new interfaces with the microbial environment that include biological barriers and surveillance by specialize
Breeding for Disease Resistance in Farm Animals
Language: en
Pages: 370
Authors: Stephen C. Bishop
Categories: Technology & Engineering
Type: BOOK - Published: 2010 - Publisher: CABI

GET EBOOK

Addressing principles associated with breeding animals for enhanced health and resistance to specific diseases, this book provides a review of the field illustr
Applied Mathematical Ecology
Language: en
Pages: 498
Authors: Simon A. Levin
Categories: Mathematics
Type: BOOK - Published: 2012-12-06 - Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

GET EBOOK

The Second Autumn Course on Mathematical Ecology was held at the Intern ational Centre for Theoretical Physics in Trieste, Italy in November and December of 198