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Department of Animal Molecular Biology

Manager
Prof. Katarzyna Ropka Molik, Ph.D.
e-mail:  katarzyna.ropka@iz.edu.pl
phone: 666 081 208

Research, research and development, implementation, dissemination works and trainings  

  • use of microsatellite DNA sequence polymorphism to characterize the genetic structure of various breeds of farm animals and to assess population genetic variability,
  • identification of polymorphisms in genes conditioning resistance (susceptibility) to disease and associated with the occurrence of malformations in farm animals,
  • identification of immunoglobulin markers of farm animals with the aim of establishing correlations with health,
  • analysis of specialized chromosome structures in the karyotype of farm animals as part of the assessment of the phenomena of polymorphism and genetic conservatism,
  • comparative research of the genomes of various animals in the context of evolutionary changes,
  • evaluation of the genome of farm animals in the context of the effect of mutagenic factors and aging processes,
  • improvement of cytogenetic and molecular methods used in genome evaluation,
  • genome scanning in search of SNP markers of production traits and monitoring of biodiversity of farm animals,
  • study of epigenetic mechanisms of gene expression regulation (DNA methylation),
  • evaluation of genome organization within chromosomes and the influence of higher DNA organizational structures on gene expression,
  • identification of CNV (copy number variation) areas and linkage disequilibrium (LD) regions in the genomes of farm animals,
  • search for the basis of genetic diseases of farm animals based on highly efficient genomics techniques,
  • proteomic identification of biomarkers characteristic for productive traits of breeding animals, disease conditions and genetic defects and also giving the possibility of evaluating the influence of environment on immune system,
  • study of proteome of raw materials originating from breeding animals,
  • the development of the base of proteomic characteristics of raw materials and food products of animal origin.

Tasks

  • pedigree verification of the following species of farm animals: cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and horses with regard to type I and II genetic markers,
  • monitoring of the population of farm animals for genetic defects, DNA mutations and genetic resistance and susceptibility determinants,
  • identification of the components of animal origin in feed mixtures with the application of the analysis of chosen regions of mitochondrial DNA,
  • establishing SNP genotypes based on microarrays as part of the programme of genomic selection of dairy cattle.

Laboratories