Issue |
Genet. Sel. Evol.
Volume 34, Number 6, November-December 2002
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Page(s) | 679 - 703 | |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/gse:2002031 |
DOI: 10.1051/gse:2002031
Marker assisted selection with optimised contributions of the candidates to selection
Beatriz Villanuevaa, Ricardo Pong-Wongb and John A. Woolliamsba Scottish Agricultural College, West Mains Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3JG, Scotland, UK
b Roslin Institute (Edinburgh), Roslin, Midlothian, EH25 9PS, Scotland, UK
(Received 13 November 2001; accepted 2 August 2002)
Abstract
The benefits of marker assisted selection (MAS) are evaluated under
realistic assumptions in schemes where the genetic contributions of
the candidates to selection are optimised for maximising the rate of
genetic progress while restricting the accumulation of inbreeding. MAS
schemes were compared with schemes where selection is directly on the
QTL (GAS or gene assisted selection) and with schemes where genotype
information is not considered (PHE or phenotypic selection). A
methodology for including prior information on the QTL effect in the
genetic evaluation is presented and the benefits from MAS were
investigated when prior information was used. The optimisation of the
genetic contributions has a great impact on genetic response but the
use of markers leads to only moderate extra short-term
gains. Optimised PHE did as well as standard truncation GAS (i.e.
with fixed contributions) in the short-term and better in the
long-term. The maximum accumulated benefit from MAS over PHE was, at
the most, half of the maximum benefit achieved from GAS, even with
very low recombination rates between the markers and the QTL. However,
the use of prior information about the QTL effects can substantially
increase genetic gain, and, when the accuracy of the priors is high
enough, the responses from MAS are practically as high as those
obtained with direct selection on the QTL.
Key words: marker assisted selection / gene assisted selection / optimised selection / BLUP selection / restricted inbreeding
Correspondence and reprints: Beatriz Villanueva
e-mail: b.villanueva@ed.sac.ac.uk
© INRA, EDP Sciences 2002