Session4

Livestock Exchange

Session 4: THURSDAY

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11:20 – 12:35 ‘Animal Health and Genetics’ [Tent]
Overview –Vish Nene: Lessons, Reflection, Future Perspectives

Participant debate, sharing, reflection on issues related to:

1. Animal breeding and genetics
2. Animal diseases and vaccine development
3. Bionformatics

• Outputs to outcomes and impact

PROCESS: Lalibela buzz ("and the bees came to him")
Facilitation: Ewen Le Borgne and Peter Ballantyne

• (2 min) Brief intro by Peter about the process for the session;
• (2 min) Vish Nene introducing this session: why animal health and genetics matter, how it ties in with other themes from the Xchange, how it relates to the global livestock agenda and the ILRI one, why it matters for the future of the field and the organisation;
• (15-20 min) Vish giving his presentation about animal health and genetics, revisiting the three revolutions and the 'omics' world.
• (5 min) Ewen explaining the process and forming the swarms/teams across the room:
  • Eight experts (Vish Nene, Tom Randolph, Apollinaire Djikeng, Segenet Kelemu, Julie Ojango, Steve Kemp, Okeyo Mwai, Azage Tegegne) sit at a given place under the tent. They may know about either of the 3 sub-topics mentioned above and have a sign that indicates what fields they are knowledgeable about.
  • Participants divide themselves in eightgroups of 10-12. As a group they need to organise themselves to collect the following points from at least 3 resource persons / experts:
    1. The most controversial issue about their field, which needs attention or discussion;
    2. The next big thing in that field generally;
    3. What ILRI should do about this field / topic;
  • They have to collect that information and try to get the best information out of experts by discussing with them for 10 min and also by prompting him/her with questions and discussing the issue. They can organise themselves as they want as a group but they need to have one person documenting the answers on a card (to be organised). If they want, they can send 'rogue bees' to other swarms but their main group should stay together.
• (30 min) Creating a buzz around Lalibela
  • Each team comes around the expert and collects information + organises the documentation the way they want;
  • This happens in 3 rounds of 10 min (Ewen or someone will blow the horn to signal when it's time to move to another expert);
• (20 min) Conclusions - each group gives their perspective on one key lesson / controversial issue / next big thing - Groups may add up points. Ewen will facilitate this part.

TO ORGANISE:

• Prepare posters or cards to collect inputs from expert
• Brief experts about their role

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Collective insights and session outcomes

Please indicate here what were a) the key collective insights, statements, questions, issues raised and b) the session outcomes (general description of how it went and what came out of it + possible reflections about the process).

Collective insights

Human health group discussion (Vish Nene)

• Plants don’t have the adaptive immunity that mammals have, they have innate responses
• From the funding side, we need to know from our partners if they are funding institutes, universities, etc. We need to build needs linkage with NGO’s and other organizations working on the ground;
• There is lack of robust method to generate immune response system – but there are many tools out there to develop databases;
• The biggest challenge we are facing is that we are still scratching the surface, following our rational approach on vaccine development;

Genetics group discussion (Tom Randolph)

• How can we exploit the biotech findings and research to assist the smallholder farmer?
  We need to understand the problem on the ground then understand how the science can assist by investing time and effort. E.g. CRP 3.7 Milk, meat and fish- is aimed at increasing productivity (in terms of breeding) through value chain research. New technology will reduce the constraints in the future.
• Adaptation is being overlooked currently, but research remains very important at all times. Perhaps we could consider involving the private sector to implement the research?
• What are the opportunities and priorities to improve smallholder systems?
• We have to improve on our process assistance and impact assessment.

Genomics group discussion (Steve Kemp)

• This is a highly controversial issue in genetics.
• What is needed regarding transgenic issues:
  • Economic Analysis
  • Policy environment for livestock
  • Risk benefit comparison for developed countries to developing
  • Impact assessment
• Can genomics contribute to animal productivity? Has ILRI seriously thought about its strategy in this respect?
• We have the genes but the interaction is very complex: We have technical, policy, social and public issues interlinked.
• In a long term we can help the poor
• How long will it takes to do breeding and produce more animal to productions?
• What is our plan to scale up the process?
• How will high tech issues be translated to farmers so they can understand them?

Animal health and genetics – breeding (Azage)

• ILRI Ethiopia is involved in mass insemination of animals. Sex fixing is giving favorable success rates. This is reducing the vulnerability of herds.
• In pastoral systems 55 % of animals are non-productive. What is needed is fertility management and improving the calf mortality rate - this will lead to less stress on the environment and improve productivity in these systems;
• Working on the animal breeding sequence (identifying characteristics, gene type, etc.) takes a long time;
• We need to have animal science group in ILRI to up streaming cross- breeding;
• We are working with various stakeholders to enhance the breeding system;
• Transgenic issues can go to scale for smallholder farmers;
• ILRI’s role is to generate the result, communicate effectively and implement;
• Why don’t we clone the existing breeding systems?
• We could create huge database with all the necessary information, keep learning and come up with the best possible breeds – perhaps even create a “designer animal” and replicate it – though we would have to think about the controversy of creating a monster.

Overall...

• Controversial issue for the future include:
  • Animal vs. human testing;
  • Transgenic animals (genes from microbes jumping from animals to humans) – it is too early, there is no policy about it, public understanding is limited and the agenda is Euro-centric
  • Should ILRI conserve endangered species? Introducing new breeds could be important but preserving indigenous animals (for which we don’t know the real value yet) is very important for future use;
  • Genetically-modified livestock!
• The next big things seem to be:
  • Decreasing the cost of genotyping vs. increasing the cost of phenotyping;
  • Understanding basis/mechanisms, t-cells…
  • Improvement in genetic diversity;
  • Diagnostic tools;
  • Designer animals that suit different production systems;
  • A better match of animals with ecology / PS[e1]
  • More phenotyping than genotyping
  • Developing capacities for developing database feedback;
  • Characterisation of animal genetic resources;
  • Transgenic issues;
  • How to translate genomics into information products;
  • Intervening in how ruminants work;
  • Ways to improve fertility of indigenous animals;
  • A quicker way to restock pastoralist areas;
  • Encouraging farmers and pastoralists to keep fewer but better animals;
  • Vaccine development: understanding the basis / mechanisms of T-Cells for immune response;

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Session outcomes - possible intervention areas for ILRI

• Develop an animal science group in ILRI to up streaming cross-breeding;
• Generate the result, communicate effectively and implement;
• Mobilise more efforts and support from a diversity of partners, looking for win-win partnerships;
• In health technology and immunology, ILRC can adapt its research to address health issues;

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