Animal Genetics
Responsibilities in the Department of Animal Science include research in the area of beef cattle genetics, teaching undergraduate and graduate courses, and directing graduate students at the MS and PhD level.
The beef industry in Louisiana is primarily cow-calf commercial operations with the goal of selling acceptable feeder calves at weaning. The majority of these commercial cow-calf operations have some degree of Brahman inheritance in the cow herd. Many use the Brahman F1 cow in a terminal crossbreeding system. Our research seeks to enhance their goals. Recently completed research demonstrated that the Brahman F1 cow was more productive in pounds of calf weaned per cow exposed than two-, three- or four-breed rotational crossbreeding systems when one of the breeds involved in the rotation systems was Brahman. We are currently evaluating purebred Brahman steers from herd sires of Brahman breeders in Louisiana for growth and carcass traits, including tenderness on loin steaks aged for 7 and 14 days. The scheme is basically that of progeny testing. This area of research is timely because of the emphasis on consumer acceptance traits in the beef industry. The basic objective is to predict breeding values of the sires used in this study.
Another research project involves using industry Angus and Polled Hereford sires through AI that have high or low maternal EPDs to produce purebred daughters to evaluate for milk yield and reproduction. The assumption is that we can produce Angus and Polled Hereford daughters with genetic potential higher than can be met by the nutritional value of our forages. Thus, the high genetic potential cows may sacrifice reproduction in order to produce more milk. This study is in cooperation with 7 other Land Grant Universities in the Southern Region. Daughters of high maternal EPD sires produce more milk and their calves weigh at weaning than daughters of low maternal EPD sires, but no differences in reproduction have been observed so far.
Other research involves using crossbred cows with varying amounts of Brahman inheritance to progeny test Brahman sires that are sons of Brahman bulls identified above as being able to transmit genetics to purebred steers for desirable carcass traits. We hope to test the degree of inheritance from these relatives and also evaluate the degree of Brahman inheritance on growth and carcass traits in progeny. Steer calves will be evaluated for postweaning growth and carcass traits, including measures of tenderness.
The teaching responsibility includes ANSC 4018 (Principles of Animal Genetics) and ANSC 4084 (Beef Cattle Production) for advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate students and a graduate course in Animal Genetics (ANSC 7006). Research problems at the undergraduate and graduate level are possible (ANSC 3051 and ANSC 7061). ANSC 4018 and 4084 are offered in the Spring Semester each year and ANSC 7006 is offered in the Fall of odd years.
Other responsibilities include serving on departmental, college, Louisiana Agriculture Experiment Station and university faculty senate committees. Franke served as president of the LSU Sigma Xi Society, in all officer positions of the Southern Section American Society of Animal Science, and as a member of the Board of Directors of the American Society of Animal Science. Honors include the Doyle Chambers Research Award and several annual Gamma Sigma Delta Teaching Merit awards.
Representative Publications:
Crews, D. H. Jr., and D. E. Franke. 1998. Heterogeneity of variances for carcass traits by percentage Brahman inheritance. J. Anim. Sci. 76:1803-1809.
Franke, D. E. 1998. Selection for production and efficiency of Brahmans. Proc. 9th World Brahman Congress, Pereira, Colombia.
Franke, D. E. 1997. Postweaning performance and carcass merit of F1 steers sired by Brahman and alternative sub-tropically adapted breeds. J. Anim. Sci. 75:2604-2608.
Thrift, F. A., S. M. Clark, D. K. Aaron, and D. E. Franke. 1997. Interaction between calf sex and calf genetic type for preweaning traits of calves varying in percentage Brahman breeding. Prof. Anim. Sci. 13:145-148.
Humes, P. E., D. E. Franke, W. E. Wyatt, T. D. Bidner and K. S. King. 1997. A comparison among Brahman composite and Brahman-Hereford F1 cows for calf weaning traits. The Louisiana Cattlemen 30:11-13.
Newman, M. J., R. E. Truax, D. D. French, M. A. Dietrich, D. E. Franke, and M. J Stear. 1996. Evidence for genetic control of vaccine-induced antibody responses in cattle. Vet. Immun. and Immunopath. 50:43-54.
Coombs, D. F., D. G. Morrison, D. E. Franke, S. M. DeRouen, W. E. Wyatt, T. W. White, P. E. Humes, B. B. Green, and J. M. Gillespie. 1996. Body condition and winter supplementation effect on weight change and reproduction in Spring-calving beef heifers. La. Agric. Exp. Sta. Bull 853. Baton Rouge.
Gillespie, J., D. Coombs, and D. E. Franke. 1995. What feeding regime should be used to rebreed first calf cows with low initial body condition scores? La. Rural Economists 57:11-13.