Prevalence of the Robertsonian (1;29) translocation incattle in the state of Zacatecas, Mexico

Abstract

The purpose of this work was to estimate the prevalence of the Translocation 1;29 (t rob 1;29) in cattle herds in theMexican state of Zacatecas. Blood samples were obtained from 661 bovines of eight breeds: Holstein (n= 284),American Swiss (n= 213), Braunvieh (n= 69), Simmental (n= 13), Angus (n= 5), Creole (n= 65), Chianina (n= 3) andCharolais (n= 9). Sampling was conducted in nine municipalities of the state of Zacatecas and one in the state ofAguascalientes. Age, sex and productive purpose were also recorded. Identification of the t rob 1;29 was performedby conventional cytogenetic technique. An overall prevalence of 4.1 %, with no differences between males andfemales (6.0 vs 3.4 % respectively), although greater (P<0.10) in young animals vs adults (5.4 vs 2.6 % respectively)was observed. Breed differences (P<0.001) were observed with a greater prevalence in the Criollo breed (12.3 %),followed by Swiss American breed (7.5 %) and lower among Braunvieh (1.4 %), Holstein (0.4 %) and othersbreeds (0.0 %). According to productive purpose a greater prevalence (P<0.001) was observed in dual purposefarms (12.3 %) than dedicated exclusively to the milk (3.3 %) or beef (2.4 %) production. Based on these resultsand because of the potential negative effects on herd productivity, a chromosomal analysis of breeding animalsis recommended as a routine practice, to identify animals carrying the t rob 1;29, mainly in sires.