Swine Resources - Genetics

September 2019

History and current status of Black Slavonian (Crna slavonska) pig breed, an autochthonous pig breed in the Republic of Croatia.

History and current status of the breed

Black Slavonian (Crna slavonska) pig is an autochthonous pig breed in the Republic of Croatia. It was created during the second part of the nineteenth century on the estate of Count Pfeifer, Orlovnjak, near Osijek. It is also known by the name “Fajferica”. It is a result of planned crossing between four pig breeds: Mangalitsa, Berkshire, Poland China and Large Black pig. This crossing aimed to create a pig with better meat and fertility traits. The first phase of crossing includes ten gilts of Mangalitsa and Berkshire boars. Additionally, Poland China boars were included in crossing schemes every 10 years. These systematic crossings were carried out from 1870 to 1910. The final phase of creation of Black Slavonian breed was during 1920 when crossing with English black breed-large black occurred. The success of crossing and breeding was confirmed in 1873 by winning gold medals at the Vienna Agricultural Fair. At the end of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Black Slavonian pig was the most common and, from an economic standpoint, the most important pig in what is now eastern Croatia. Thus, it is nowadays rightly considered an indigenous breed. Census of Black Slavonian pig breed is presented in Figure 1. Presently there about 209 registered farms with 1930 breeding sows and 242 boars of Black Slavonian pig breed in the latest available status (December 2017).

Figure 1. Census of Black Slavonian pig breed, presenting number of sows and boars per year.

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April 2019

Genome editing (also known as gene editing, genome engineering, genetic engineering) refers to a set of tools and techniques that allows researchers to manipulate the underlying genetic code of an organism. These changes can include adding, removing or making specific modifications to targeted regions in the genome. Although a number of methods exist for genome editing, the potential promise and quick rise to popularity of the CRISPR-Cas9 approach, which stands for Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats and CRISPR associated protein 9, has placed it front and center in the public eye.

CRISPR-Cas9 was originally discovered in bacteria where it protects against viruses in a similar way to how our immune system operates. By storing short pieces of DNA from the viruses, the bacteria are able to recognize viruses that have infected them before and produce short RNA sequences that match the viruses' DNA. These short RNA sequences bind to Cas9, or other CRISPR associated proteins, which are able to cut both strands of the targeted DNA. If the virus is unable to correctly repair these cuts, it usually dies. Much like in the bacteria, researchers are able to create short RNA sequences that bind to Cas9 and guide it to specific locations of interest within an organism's genetic code. Once a cut is made, researchers rely on the cell's own DNA repair mechanisms to make the desired manipulations (add, remove or modify).

By Blythe Schultz and Jason W. Ross
Iowa State University Department of Animal Science Iowa Pork Industry Center
National Hog Farmer

June 20, 2018

Scientists have produced pigs that can resist one of the world's most costly animal diseases, by changing their genetic code. Tests with the virus -- called Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome, or PRRS -- found the pigs do not become infected at all. The animals show no signs that the change in their DNA has had any other impact on their health or wellbeing.

University of Edinburgh