Genomics centre receives nearly $4M in funding

Edmonton, AB – Livestock Gentec, formerly the Alberta Bovine Genomics Program, is receiving nearly $4 million in new funding – $2.25 million from Bio Solutions and the $1.5 million from the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency.

The funding builds on the more than $10 million previously contributed by the University of Alberta, Advanced Education and Technology, Agriculture and Rural Development and other supporters and will position Livestock Gentec as the national hub for livestock genomics. The funding enables the centre to increase its research capacity and provide additional support for business development and technology transfer.

The centre was recently a major participant in the first-ever sequencing of the bovine genome. It was also the first in Canada to sequence a dairy bull and a beef bull, and researchers there sequenced a Brazilian bull and identified genetic markers that predict the temperament of the animal. To date, it has found more than 125 genetic markers to improve cattle. More than a dozen have been commercialized and many are in the technology transfer pipeline.

“Sequencing genomes helps identify with greater precision the genetic markers that enable breeders to improve domestic livestock species. This results in the higher quality milk and meat products that consumers are demanding,” said Dr Stephen Moore, Livestock Gentec’s scientific director.