Inbreeding

Inbreeding is the mating of two organisms (often animals) that are closely related to each other, and often refers to the continued practice of this, producing inbred animals. It can be used to create offspring with specific desirable characteristics, as in the case of pedigree dogs, cats, or racehorses, but it also occurs naturally in relatively small and isolated populations of animals (including humans, of course). Inbreeding may occur if few people have a disproportionate number of children in a community, as is common in polygamous societies and those isolated from the wider population. In the case of humans, inbreeding is most commonly associated with incest.

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This article covers genetically homogeneous breeding amongst plants and animals. For a focus on humans, see incest.

Benefits and motivations

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Encouragement of desirable traits

Inbreeding can be used as a method of artificial selection to selectively breed plants and animals with desirable traits. An example of this would be the breeding of pedigree dogs. Inbreeding may lead to a highly specialised genome, such as in the case of the cheetah — a species of cat that is heavily inbred, claimed to have been caused by a catastrophic drop in population that occurred thousands of years ago. The species is highly specialized, yet possesses a relatively weak immune system.[1]

Ironically, incest is vital to the development of extreme traits in prized domesticated angiosperms and animals — offspring in this process are referred to as hybrids from a taxonomic viewpoint. Because a few generations of interbreeding can lead to a variety of genetic problems, "out breeding" is performed to remix the genes a bit — farmers may also just buy new seeds outright instead of using their own from the harvest. While farmers do inbreed plants, flower plants have a mechanism to prevent self-fertilization in a process called self-incompatibility. In this process, the plant will literally poison pollen it detects as its own with a poison called S-RNase.[2]

Hybrid breeding has yielded an increase in nutritional value among plants;[3] part of this is can be accounted for by the fact that plants are much easier to interbreed than animals due to plants having a higher fertility rate.

Applications in genetic research

Inbred strains of species are important in genetic research. Inbreeding creates a less varied genome, reducing the chances that a genetic variation among test subjects could skew their results.

Drawbacks

Loss of diversity in the genome

A loss of diversity may leave a group less adaptable to changing circumstances - creating a genetic monoculture. In the case of plants, this increases the risk that crops would be eliminated by a pest or disease for which the entire group lacks resistance. An example of this is found in the Irish potato famine, in which two factors led to mass starvation: over-reliance on a single crop (potatoes), and a lack of variety in that crop.[4]

Recessive traits and genetic abnormalities

Recessive traits are traits coded for by recessive alleles. Recessive alleles are variants of genes that are "switched off" or overridden by the presence of a dominant allele of the same gene: Therefore, a recessive trait will only be expressed if an individual carries only recessive alleles for that trait's gene(s). Close relatives are much more likely than strangers to carry the same alleles, increasing the chances that their offspring could inherit recessive alleles from both parents. Recessive traits may be cosmetic, such as in the cases of blue eyes and red hair,[5] or more serious, carrying mutations leading to genetic abnormalities or diseases such as hemophilia or cystic fibrosis [6].

In animal breeding, the bulldog is commonly cited as an example of inbreeding taken to a point that the animal could not have otherwise reached by natural selection. Bulldogs have been bred for their characteristic floppy face, but in some dogs this has reached point at which dogs may struggle to breathe. The UK Kennel Club, an organization for dog breeders, issued guidelines to limit the breeding of that specific characteristic.[7]

See also

• Incest
• Bestiality
• Genetics
• Sexual reproduction
• Artificial selection

External links

• Angels and insects at IMDB
• See the Wikipedia article on Charles II of Spain.

References

1. Cheetahs Appear Vigorous Despite Inbreeding
2. https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=105840
3. Bänziger (2000). "Breeding for drought and nitrogen stress tolerance in maize: from theory to practice". From Theory to Practice: 7–9. Retrieved 7-11-2013.
4. Irish Monoculture and the Irish Potato Famine: cases of missing genetic variation
5. Hair Color
6. Cystic Fibrosis at Genetics Home Reference
7. Healthier new bulldog will lose its Churchillian jowl