Conservation & local programs

Livestock Genomic Health During Domestication: A Palaeogenomic Perspective

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Abstract

Palaeogenomics has transformed our understanding of the genetic past, and most recently in the evolution and occurrence of human-infecting pathogens. In this context, much attention has been paid to the possibility that the emergence of animal herding economies in Southwest Asia ~10,000 years ago drove the emergence or occurrence of zoonotic infections from livestock, and that it affected human health in other negative ways. However, less research effort has been paid to the genomic health and epidemiological implications for the livestock species themselves and the pathogens which infected them. Ancient genomic datasets from livestock remains provide an opportunity to explore the millenia-long evolution and occurrence of domestic populations and their associated pathogens. This presentation will address this deficit, by a) assessing trends of genetic diversity across multiple livestock over the last 10,000 years, b) exploring a case study of a 8,000 year old Brucella melitensis genome, the to-date oldest reported livestock pathogen genome, and c) assessing genetic evidence over 20 ancient Sheeppox virus cases from Western Eurasia, obtained from a diverse range of materials including manuscript parchment. A recurrent pattern is observed of livestock-associated pathogens diversifying within the time frame of domestication i.e. within the last 10,000 years. Together these preliminary results underlie a hypothesis that specific host-associated lineages of pathogens, which affect livestock populations today, evolved as a consequence of the domestication process.

Keywords: 2026

How to Cite:

Daly, K., (2026) “Livestock Genomic Health During Domestication: A Palaeogenomic Perspective”, World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production Digital Archive 2026(1): 2285377. doi: https://doi.org/10.31274/wcgalp.23665

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