‘Scientists in Nairobi have discovered a new set of genetic markers in African cattle that signal beneficial characteristics, with a view to harnessing them for future generations.’—Nature Genetics Continue reading
Belgian artist Koen Vanmechelen has created a chicken with genes from different chicken breeds from all over the world. Now he’s bringing it to America to help diversify our poultry. Continue reading
‘Archaeologists have long known that people started to domesticate animals for food at the dawn of agriculture in the Fertile Crescent (the curve of land across the Middle East from the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf) about 10,000 years ago. But details of the complex pathways through which improved livestock spread across Europe and Asia are only now emerging, as genomic technology makes it practical to compare the DNA of hundreds of animals across continents. . . . ‘A Chinese consortium led the sheep study in collaboration with the International Livestock Research Institute in Nairobi; it is published in the journal Molecular Biology and Evolution. Continue reading
Illustration, ‘Meat and Methane’, by Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com. A recent news feature in Nature Climate Change, Light is cast on a long shadow, notes the warming relations (forgive the pun) between scientists in the livestock and climate change communities. ‘The fields of climate change and livestock research have not always been cosy bedfellows. But they are … Continue reading
Petroglyphs and pictographs in the Jebel Acacus, Libyan Sahara (photo on Flickr by Carsten ten Brink / 10b travelling). This month’s publication of a scientific article on new evidence of livestock herding in prehistoric Africa is stirring interest. ScienceDaily, for example, reports the following: Chemical analysis of pottery reveals first dairying in Saharan Africa nearly 7,000 years … Continue reading
Olivier Hanotte, a former livestock geneticist at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), with whom he collaborates today, has the following to say in a recent blog post about the value of Africa’s native livestock. ‘[Africa’s] indigenous livestock are not only adapted to diverse African agro-ecological production systems – they are also unique and responsive … Continue reading
‘Die genetische Vielfalt von afrikanischem Vieh muss unbedingt und raschest in Bio-Banken gespeichert werden. ‘Das fordern Forscher in einem Artikel im Wissenschaftsmagazin Science. “Die in Afrika vorhandenen nativen Zuchten haben sich den zum Teil sehr schwierigen Lebensbedingungen gut anpassen können”, so Studien Co-Autor Olivier Hanotte, Professor für Genetik an der University of Nottingham im pressetext-Interview. … Continue reading
ILRI Clippings 