UVAS AGL team acquires expertise to offer genetic testing service

The University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS) Animal Genetics Lab (AGL) has completed a state of the art set up and optimised the testing techniques for clinical cytogenetic analysis to offer cytogenetic diagnostic/testing services to livestock industry, including livestock farms, breeders of farm livestock, equine and Ppet breeders.
These are fundamental tests for all animals to ascertain that they are free from any genetic defects at chromosomal level because any chromosomal abnormalities in livestock, equines and pets cause a significant number (10pc) of infertility, reproductive problems, spontaneous abortions and still births in these animals.
These problems ultimately cost in billions to the livestock and animal breeding industry in the country but remain unnoticed. In Pakistan the application of this very simple and basic genetic testing has been overlooked for long time and the hard work of AGL research team has successfully achieved expertise to offer this genetic testing service to public and private livestock, equine and pet breeders, farmers and keepers.
This lab has been established by the support of Higher Education Commission (HEC) R & D Grant and Pakistan Science Foundation's NSLP initiatives. The Animal Genetics Lab (AGL) has released the results of its first applied cytogenetic study on four buffalo calves maintained at Dairy Training and Research Centre (DAT & RC) at the same campus. The Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Mohammad Nawaz and the Dean Faculty of Animal Production and Technology Professor Dr Talat Naseer Pasha hailed the efforts of whole AGL team and expressed their hope that AGL achieves excellence through its world class research on Animal Genetics using latest DNA analysis techniques such as next generation sequencing and discovering novel genetic variations determining superior genetic potential of dairy and meat animals for higher milk yield and meat production.