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Hendrix Genetics, Hypor’s parent company, and the University of Edinburgh’s Roslin Institute have established a research agreement to pursue improvements in the sustainability of animal production. Researchers will focus on driving innovations that lead to greater disease resistance in farmed animals and better selective breeding programmes. “This partnership with Roslin, a world leading research institute, offers a unique opportunity to improve our breeding programs through applied research projects using the latest genomic technology”, says Dr Johan van Arendonk, Chief Innovation and Technology Officer at Hendrix Genetics.
Hendrix and Roslin already have a strong research relationship concerning farmed salmon disease genetics and see the new agreement as an opportunity to collaborate on breeding developments with other livestock species, including pigs and poultry. Professor Bruce Whitelaw, Deputy Director and Head of the Division of Developmental Biology at The Roslin Institute, said “Working with Hendrix Genetics across a number of commercial species offers exciting opportunities for the science that Roslin pioneers.” The existing collaboration on salmon, which has been running for several years, has already yielded the discovery of a gene that makes salmon more resilient to a viral disease. This has led, in turn, to the development of genetic tools that have improved the selective breeding of salmon with resistance to sea lice.
Hendrix and the Roslin Institute are now strengthening and extending their relationship, allowing them to explore precision breeding technology, not only in aquaculture, but also in pig, chicken and turkey breeding. Their goal is to reduce losses and improve welfare in the fish farming and livestock industries.
November 23, 2016 - Hypor
