ROADMAP:

Objectives

The overall aim of ROADMAP is to foster transitions towards prudent use of antimicrobials (AMs) in animal production in different contexts to manage antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Prudent antimicrobial use (AMU) will be achieved by enhancing antimicrobial decision-systems along the food and drug supply chains. ROADMAP will focus on supporting animal health and welfare through prevention and health promotion actions.

EC funding : 5 999 753 €

Duration : 4 years

Start : 1st of june 2019

Coordinator : Fortané Nicolas, nicolas.fortane@inra.fr

Project manager : Floriana Pondichie, Floriana-Alina.Pondichie@inra.fr

B4BEST : Adaptive BREEDING for productive, sustainable and resilient FORESTs under climate change 

Objectives

The goal of B4EST is to increase forest survival, health, resilience and productivity under climate change and natural disturbances, while maintaining genetic diversity and key ecological functions, and fostering a competitive EU bio-based economy. B4EST will provide forest tree breeders, forest managers and owners, and policy makers with: 1) better scientific knowledge on adaptation profiles and sustainable productivity, and added value of raw materials in important European tree species for forestry, 2) new and flexible adaptive tree breeding strategies, 3) tree genotypes of highly adaptive and economical value, 4) decision-support tools for the choice and use of Forest Reproductive Material (FRM) while balancing production, resilience and genetic diversity, including case studies developed with industrial partners, 5) integrative performance models to guide FRM deployment at stand and landscape level, 6) economic analyses of risks/benefits/costs, and 6) policy recommendations. B4EST will capitalise on the resources developed by past and current EU projects to produce -together with tree breeders, forest managers and owners, and the industry- operational solutions to better adapt forests to climate change and reinforce the competitiveness of the EU forest-based sector. To cover the geographical, economic and societal needs of forestry in the EU, B4EST will work with 8 (six native, two non-native) conifers and broadleaves with advanced breeding programmes (Norway spruce, Scots pine, maritime pine, poplars, Douglas-fir, eucalypts) or that are case studies of pest-threatened forests (ash) or valuable non-wood products (stone pine). Our approach will result in a high degree of data and knowledge integration, involving multiple and new target traits and their trade-offs; genomic information; temporal and spatial assessments in a wide range of environments; stakeholder demands; and forest owner and manager risk perception and acceptability of new breeding strategies.

EC funding : 6 000 000 €

Duration : 4 years

Start : 1st of May 2018

Coordinator : Catherine Bastien, catherine.bastien@inra.fr

Project manager : Anthony Vermue , anthony.vermue@inra.fr

Website : http://www.b4est.eu

SMARTER: SMAll RuminanTs breeding for Efficiency and Resilience

Objectives

SMARTER will develop and deploy innovative strategies to improve Resilience and Efficiency (R&E) related traits in sheep and goats. SMARTER will find these strategies by: i) generating and validating novel R&E related traits at a phenotypic and genetic level ii) improving and developing new genome-based solutions and tools relevant for the data structure and size of small ruminant populations, iii) establishing new breeding and selection strategies for various breeds and environments that consider R&E traits. SMARTER with help from stakeholders chose several key R&E traits including feed efficiency, health (resistance to disease, survival) and welfare. Experimental populations will be used to identify and dissect new predictors of these R&E traits and the trade-off between animal ability to overcome external challenges. SMARTER will estimate the underlying genetic and genomic variability governing these R&E related traits. This variability will be related to performance in different environments including genotype-by-environment interactions (conventional, agro-ecological and organic systems) in commercial populations. The outcome will be accurate genomic predictions for R&E traits in different environments across different breeds and populations. SMARTER will also create a new cooperative European and international initiative that will use genomic selection across countries. This initiative will make selection for R&E traits faster and more efficient. SMARTER will also characterize the phenotype and genome of traditional and underutilized breeds. Finally, SMARTER will propose new breeding strategies that utilise R&E traits and trade-offs and balance economic, social and environmental challenges. The overall impact of the multi-actor SMARTER project will be ready-to-use effective and efficient tools to make small ruminant production resilient through improved profitability and efficiency.

EC funding : 7 million euros

Duration : 4 years

Start : November 1st 2018

Coordinator : Carole Moreno-Romieux carole.moreno-romieux@inra.fr

Project manager : Cloé Paul-Victor cloe.paul-victor@inra.fr

Site web: www.smarterproject.eu

GENE-SWitCH:

Objectives

GENE-SWitCH aims to deliver new underpinning knowledge on the functional genomes of two main monogastric farm species (pig and chicken) and to enable immediate translation to the pig and poultry sectors. The activation status of functional genome sequences varies across time and space, and in response to environmental perturbations. In full coordination and synergy with global effort and ongoing projects of the Functional Annotation of Animal Genomes (FAANG) community, we will characterize the dynamics (“switches”) of the functional genome from embryo (chicken) and fetus (pig) to adult life by targeting a panel of tissues relevant to sustainable production. New expression QTL data in pigs and existing high-resolution QTL data in chicken will be used for developing innovative genomic predictive models that integrate functional annotations, and these models will be validated in commercial pig and poultry populations. In addition, nutritional epigenetic data will allow evaluation of the influence of maternal diet on the epigenome of the pig fetus and whether such effects persist until post-weaning. These openshared datasets will conform fully with FAANG standards and add valuable knowledge on genetic and epigenetic variation of functional elements to FAANG. A comprehensive plan of dissemination and outreach activities to a large audience of stakeholders will be implemented. The GENE-SWitCH consortium brings together partners representing pan-European excellence (including the academic institutions which pioneered FAANG) and world-leading animal breeding and biotech industry in a true co-creation effort. Overall, GENE-SWitCH will contribute to the global FAANG effort considerably, demonstrate how functional annotation of genomes can foster the advancement of genomic selection for immediate benefit to the breeding industry, and produce cutting-edge research paving the way to new studies and strategies for sustainable productions.

EC funding : 6 million euros

Durée : 4 years

Start : July 1st 2019

Coordinator : Elisabetta Giuffra elisabetta.giuffra@inra.fr (co-coordinator : Hervé Acloque herve.acloque@inra.fr)

Project manager : Camille Bénard camille.benard@inra.fr

Website : https://www.gene-switch.eu/