Economic and Genetic Aspects of Using Sexed Semen in Traditional and Genomic Evaluation of Iranian Holstein Dairy Cattle: A Simulation Study

Authors
A. Boustan 1
A. Nejati Javaremi 2
M. Moradi Shahrbabak 2
1 Department of Animal Science, Moghan College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Islamic Republic of Iran.
2 Department of Animal Science, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Islamic Republic of Iran.
Abstract
In recent years, sexed semen has been commercially available. Due to its lower fertility and higher price compared to conventional semen, economic evaluation should be undertaken before recommending the technology to dairy producers in each country. The objectives of the present study were to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of the sexed semen usage at farm level in economic conditions of Iran based on total net present value (TNPV) and to estimate the impact of sexed semen on the rate of genetic improvement in dairy cattle population with and without using genomic information. Three relative conception rates (RCR) of sexed semen compared to the conventional semen were assumed i.e. 0.80, 0.75, and 0.70. Visual basic 6 and Excel software were used for calculations. The results showed that greater numbers of sexed semen services in heifers resulted in higher TNPV for all assumed RCRs, but for cows in parities 1 and 2, use of two sexed semen services for RCR, 0.80 and 0.75 resulted in the highest TNPV; while, for RCR= 0.70, the results indicated that using sexed semen was not economical. By using traditional evaluation, genomic evaluation with 3k chip, and genomic evaluation with 50k chip, the additional genetic gains in 305-day milk yield were, respectively, approximately 25, 34, and 38% higher than the current annual genetic progress for this trait in Iran (that is, about 53 kg per year).

Keywords

1. Baker, R. L., Shannon, P., Garrick, D. J., Blair, H. T. and Wickham, B. W. 1990. The Future Impact of New Opportunities in Reproductive Physiology and Molecular Biology on Genetic Improvement Programmes. Proc. New Zealand Soc. Anim. Prod., 50: 197–210.
2. Cabrera, V. E. 2009. When to Use Sexed Semen on Heifers. Dairy Cattle Reproduction Conference, Minneapolis, Boise, PP. 1-10.
3. De Vries, A. 2010. The Economics of Using Sexed Semen. WCDS Advances Dairy Technol., 22: 357-370.
4. DeJarnette, J. M., Nebel, R. L. and Marshall, C. E. 2009. Evaluating the Success of Sex-sorted Semen in US Dairy Herds from On-farm Records. Theriogenol., 71: 49-58.
5. Hutchison, J. L. and Norman, H. D. 2009. Characterization and Usage of Sexed Semen from US Field Data. Theriogenol., 71: 48. (Abstr.)
6. Meuwissen, T. H. E., Hayes, B. J. and Goddard, M. E. 2001. Prediction of Total Genetic Value Using Genome Wide Dense Marker Maps. Genetics, 157: 1819–1829.
7. Norman, H. D., Hutchison, J. L. and Miller, R. H. 2010. Use of Sexed Semen and Its Effect on Conception Rate, Calf Sex, Dystocia, and Stillbirth of Holsteins in the United States. J. Dairy Sci., 93: 3880-3890.
8. Olynk, N. J. and Wolf, C. A. 2007. Expected Net Present Value of Pure and Mixed Sexed Semen Artificial Insemination Strategies in Dairy Heifers. J. Dairy Sci., 90: 2569–2576.
9. Sahebhonar, M. 2008. Estimation of Genetic Trend of Production Traits and Determination of Some Effective Factors on it in Iranian Holstein Population. MS Thesis, Tehran University, Karaj, Iran.
10. Seidel, G. E. 2003. Economics of Selecting for Sex: The Most Important Genetic Trait. Theriogenol., 59: 585-598.
11. Seidel, G. E. 2007. Overview of Sexing Sperm. Theriogenol., 68: 443–446.
12. Van Vleck, L. D. 1981. Potential Genetic Impact of Artificial Insemination, Sex Selection, Embryo Transfer, Cloning, and Selfing in Dairy Cattle: New Technologies in Animal Breeding. Academic Press, New York, PP. 222-242.
13. VanRaden, P. M., O'Connell, J. R., Wiggans, G. R. and Weigel, K. A. 2010. Combining Different Marker Densities in Genomic Evaluation. Interbull Meeting, Riga, Latvia. PP. 114-118.
14. VanRaden, P. and Tooker, M. 2009. Genomic Reliability Update. Retrieved 17 November 2009, Available on the Internet: ftp://aipl.arsusda.gov/pub/outgoing/validation0608.zip
15. Weigel, K. A. 2004. Exploring the Role of Sexed Semen in Dairy Production Systems. J. Dairy Sci., 87(E. Suppl.): E120–E130.
Journal of Agricultural Science and Technology
Volume 16, Issue 4
July and August 2014
Pages 801-810