Summary
Pork producers currently utilize expected progeny differences (EPD), production indexes, phenotypic selection, and information on "major gene" (RN & Halothane) status, in order to improve traits of economic importance in pigs. The practical implementation of marker assisted selection (MAS) in commercial swine production will depend on future advances of both molecular and quantitative genetics.
This study contributes to the information available on genetic markers that have potential to be utilized in genetic improvement programs of commercial herds. The results also highlight the need for continued investigation of the effects of candidate genes within specific genetic lines. Larger populations will be needed in order to fully characterize the effects of these markers on traits of interest. It is important to note that the markers used for these association studies represent a single change in each gene of interest. There are potentially more markers within each gene, some of which may have greater effects where they have a direct effect on the trait, or they are in linkage disequilibrium with a causative mutation.