Artificial insemination (AI) has had a great influence on the development of pig production and is today widely practiced (Gerrit et al., 2005). With AI, genetic progress can at a short period of time be spread worldwide compared with using natural service and the best boars can be intensively used. This is also one of the biggest risks with AI; the impact of semen containing a genetic disease or contamination of pathogens can be enormous. Fortunately, it is a small risk of disease transmission due to many tests of the boars and the semen before use (Maes et al, 2008). It is important that the boars used for insemination have good breeding values along with good reproduction features and have good fertility results (Robinson et al., 2005).

In October 2009, a new decision was made concerning the administration of predators which resulted in a new wolf policy in Sweden. This meant that the wolf population now should be limited to 210 individuals by harvest. The new policy also recognized that the public acceptance of this species must increase and the genetic status improved. In the 17th of December a decision was taken by the Swedish parliament that it should become legal to hunt wolves in Sweden. The wolf hunt resulted in debate on a large scale amongst people, some thought of it as a good decision while others thought it was wrong.

Ovine black coat colour is determined by the MC1R (Melanocortin 1 receptor) and ASIP (Agouti signalling peptide) genes at the Agouti and Extension loci. The black phenotype is caused by production of eumelanin by melanocytes, whereas yellow-tan or light phenotype is the result of phaeomelanin synthesis. The ovine MC1R gene has two known alleles: the wildtype (E+) and the dominant black (ED) alleles. Two missense mutations (c.218T>A and c.361G>A) constitute ED. The presence of a third allele, the e allele, is proposed and believed to give rise to phaeomelanic phenotype.

Promoters are genetic elements that facilitate the transcription of a gene and they have been found in front of non-coding RNA (ncRNA) genes in different organ-isms, e.g. the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. A similar element, DUSE, has been found in front of ncRNAs in the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum and a part of this project has been to analyze the function of this putative promoter element through cloning and expression studies. A construct to analyze the func-tion of DUSE was successfully designed and introduced into D. discoideum but full expression studies were not finished because of shortage of time.

With a starting point in the legislation for organic production set up by the Swedishcertification organization KRAV, the reasons to why these regulations are important isexplained and how pigs are affected by these rules. The study also shows how well the pigscope in the organic environment considering the origin of the genetic material; from theconventional pig population. The conclusion is that pigs do function fairly well in the organicproduction environment and the traits affecting their functionality involve: motheringabilities, strong legs, good meat quality, good sow durability and longevity, capacity to eatmuch roughage and dark skin color. There are however still many ways of improving theorganic population of pigs to make them more adjusted to the organic environment; forexample different traits brought into the breeding goals and the choice of good parent animals..

With a starting point in the legislation for organic production set up by the Swedishcertification organization KRAV, the reasons to why these regulations are important isexplained and how pigs are affected by these rules. The study also shows how well the pigscope in the organic environment considering the origin of the genetic material; from theconventional pig population. The conclusion is that pigs do function fairly well in the organicproduction environment and the traits affecting their functionality involve: motheringabilities, strong legs, good meat quality, good sow durability and longevity, capacity to eatmuch roughage and dark skin color. There are however still many ways of improving theorganic population of pigs to make them more adjusted to the organic environment; forexample different traits brought into the breeding goals and the choice of good parent animals..

The purpose of this paper is to examine how propaganda has been used by two dictatorships, namely Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union under the leadership of Josef Stalin. By examining a number of propaganda posters and paintings, we aim to find similarities as well as differences in how the two nations attempted to create imagined communities amongst their people. While conducting this examination of the propaganda material, we have acquired and used some of the ideas of Benedict Anderson, who has coined a concept that he calls ?Imagined Communities?. In conclusion, it is established that the most obvious similarity is that both leaders are heavily included in their propaganda material, both pictured and mentioned in text.

The purposes of this study were to estimate genetic and phenotypic parameters for conformation traits in Swedish Ardenner, a heavy draught horse, and to investigate the inbreeding status of the population. Additionally, a breeding scheme proposal was created, based on the results achieved in the study. The data studied were obtained from the Swedish Horse Board and from the Swedish Ardenner Association. The data included 1632 three-year-old horses, mainly mares, and 356 stallions, judged between 1986 and 2005 at conformation shows. The traits studied were type, head-neck-body, legs, walk and trot at hand, total score and height at withers.

The taste of the dairy product is probably the main factor determining consumer?s dairy products choice. Consequently it is of great importance that the product tastes good and as expected every time. Off-flavors in milk can be caused by for example oxidation of the milk fat. Since copper is a prooxidant, a high copper content in the milk can cause oxidation.

The number of weaned piglets per sow and year is a good measurement of sow productivity since it is affected by the number of piglets born alive, the pre weaning mortality (i.e. mortality of live born piglets between birth and weaning) and the number of litters per sow and year. This measure is also closely connected to the number of piglets produced per year, which partly determines the profitability of the piglet producer. During this study, eleven successful piglet-producing herds were visited. Eight of the producers were Swedish and three of the producers were Danish.

This literature review summarizes available data on infection with the parasitic roundworm, Ascaridia galli, as a cause of disease in poultry, including the consequences of a conversion to alternative production systems. Ascaridia galli has a direct life cycle with resistant eggs that survive and are easily spread in the environment, especially in systems with bedding materials where the faecal contact is high. The infection is usually subclinical but depending on the infection dose, the symptoms range from weight loss and diarrhea to mortality. Factors such as the feed composition and genetic variation among different hybrids clearly affect the establishment rate of the infection. Ascaridia galli will probably become an increasing problem, with a shift from the traditional battery cages to alternative systems where the risk of re-infection is high.

The Center for Genomics and Bioinformatics (CGB) is an academic department at Karolinska Institute. Generally stated, the CGB department is committed to the generation and management of genetic information by approaches aiming at elucidating the connection between genes, protein and function.WiGID is a genome information database that is available through WAP (Wireless Application Protocol).Our version of WiGID is based on WML, PHP and PostgreSQL as a database server.One of the changes on the old WiGID application was the creation of a relational database with seven tables and one view, instead of the file that represented the database on the old version. We also changed the script language from python to PHP.The search engine ability has been extended with three new search alternatives for a user to choose from. Each choice leads to other, sometimes multiple choices.A GUI has been created for the administrator, to be able to insert information into the database.The structure of the search engine is primarily for narrowing down the search result on the phone display, thereby making the search efficient..

The aim of this literature review is to give an overview of the differences between pure- and crossbreeding systems. Crossbreeding is a mating system with individuals of different lines or breeds. It is one of several breeding strategies in dairy production used to increase the economic profit. The use of crossbreeding increases due to changes in the dairy market and an increase of inbreeding among purebred Holstein. The main benefit of crossbreeding is heterosis, which is the improvement in genetic level in a hybrid offspring above the average of the parent breeds.

ABSTRACT. Mastitis is one of the most common diseases affecting dairy cows worldwide. In Sweden annu-ally about 60% of the dairy cows get infected and Staphylococcus aureus cause approximately 30% of these infections. Mastitis causes enormous economic losses. In Sweden, the costs to cure mastitis are estimated to be 192 million SEK per year, excluding the costs for mastitis prevention.

Sweden signed, in 1992, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and has thus assumed responsibility for the indigenous biodiversity. That also means that Sweden has a conservation responsibility for the Swedish Friesian (SLB) (SJV, 2007a). In a survey conducted by the Board of Agriculture (SJV) in 1996, it appeared that there were around 780 cows and heifers of the SLB breed (SJV, 1997). SJV did in 2006 a plan for the development of livestock genet-ic resources and the number of cows of SLB was estimated at approximately 200. This meant that the SLB was in need of being conserved and SJV assumed it would be categorized as threatened.The primary objective of conservation of a breed is to reduce the loss of the original genetic variation (Lacy et al., 1995).