With mapping of the equine genome nearly completed, "gene jockeys" and the science of genomics will go to work producing healthier animals, Douglas F. Antczak told horse owners and breeders at the Jockey Club's 50th annual Round Table Conference Aug. 18 in Saratoga Springs.
"The science of genomics holds the promise to aid in our quest to breed sounder horses, decrease wastage in the racing industry and to develop new, more effective treatments for injuries and diseases," said Antczak, who is the Dorothy Havemeyer McConville Professor of Equine Medicine in Cornell's College of Veterinary Medicine as well as director of the university's James A. Baker Institute for Animal Health.
Over the past seven years, scientists from 22 laboratories in 12 countries have collaborated to sequence the equine genome, Antczak noted. In addition to a major research group at Cornell, other collaborations in the United States involve the University of California-Davis, University of Kentucky, University of Minnesota and Texas A&M University, Antczak said, adding: "This level of international cooperation, which is unprecedented in equine research, has been essential to the success of this project."
Already, genetic studies of the horse have benefited the equine industry, Antczak said, by identifying genes for three of the most important inherited diseases -- severe combined immunodeficiency disease (SCID) in Arabian horses, hyperkalemic periodic paralysis in quarter horses and lethal white syndrome in paint horses. Testing horses for the disease genes can help breeders and prospective buyers make informed decisions about matings or purchases, he said.
"The goal of these true gene jockeys is to develop genomic information for the horse that can be applied to practical studies in equine medicine and horse breeding," Antczak said. "Resources developed in the Horse Genome Project represent important new tools for the veterinary practitioner and horse breeder of the future. Their use has already begun, and their widespread practical application awaits only our imagination."
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