"When we looked at total earnings, we found buyers were paying far too much for poor quality horses," Hill says. The better predictor for earnings, she adds, was how the horses ranked on Equinome's report card, which assigns horses to a performance class based on how its genome compares with those of elite horses in her database, with class 1 being the best and 4 the worst. Her message: Not even the experts can distinguish a 1 from a 4 if they don't know the genes. "When we did the statistics, we found class is a more accurate predictor of total earnings than yearling sale price," Hill says. "Buyers were paying just as much for class 4 as for class 1. This is a bit of a fright, really."
The classic case of all this horse sense gone wrong is the story of The Green Monkey, a handsome bay colt with top-notch bloodlines that went to auction in 2006. The colt further impressed shoppers with a fast breeze—a breeze is a test run two-year-olds make before auction. Bidding began at $2 million that day in Florida. In little more than eight minutes, the horse sold for $16 million, the highest price ever paid for a thoroughbred in public auction.
It ran only four times and never won a race.
Genes and maps
When it comes to published academic research, Hill may be champion among the geneticists engaged in the search for the secrets of equine athletic potential.
In addition to publishing the discovery of the "speed gene"—actually a gene that controls the expression of the muscle growth factor, myostatin, in a January 2010 Public Library of Science paper—she has published research on several more genes and is seeking patents for some, including myostatin (MSTN).
Despite its nickname, the gene doesn't really play a role in how fast a horse runs, but rather how far it likes to run. Horses homozygous (having two copies) of one version (allele) of the gene—the so-called CC horses—are sprinters, she says. The CC means the horse has two copies of the DNA base cytosine at a particular place on the myostatin site. Those homozygous for the DNA base, thymine, at that site (the TT horses) are endurance performers. And those with one C and one T can show up on either side of the spectrum.
Among the other genes she says play a role in thoroughbred performance are peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ coactivator-1 alpha (PGC-1α), which is involved in skeletal muscle adaptation to exercise; pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase, isozyme 4 (PDK4), involved in glucose regulation, expression of which increased almost fourfold after sprints; and cytochrome c oxidase subunit 4 isoform 2 (COX 4I2), involved in respiration. Hill showed a single-nucleotide polymorphism—placed in the genome where a single nucleotide is altered—in this gene is "strongly associated" with elite sprint racing performance.
Hill's assessment of thoroughbred performance is heavily dependent on what myostatin allele it starts with, and she has often looks for performance genes in the light of a horse's myostatin status. For instance, a study in her lab suggested that PDK4, which contributes to glucose regulation, may play a role in thoroughbred performance. When a follow-up study failed to replicate the finding, she decided to look again, but this time she sorted the horses according to their myostatin allele. Her finding: PDK4 alleles affected the performance of only those horses with the long-distance TT myostatin allele.
The approach is unique to her lab. In terms of uncovering specific genes and publishing on them, she nearly has the field to herself. Few other thoroughbred geneticists have expressed interest in identifying individual genes.
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5 Comments
Add CommentGenetics make sense on paper, but all the science goes out the window when the horses leave the starting gate.My pick is “I’ll Have Another” – both in the race and when it comes to the Mint Juleps. But Is the Mint Julep the “Peeps” of cocktails? “Think about it. They’re booth sickeningly-sweet, consumed on only one day of the year and then actively avoided for the remaining 364. You be the judge. Here are my four favorite vintage Mint Julep recipes: http://thevodkaparty.com/the-mint-julep-is-it-the-peeps-of-cocktails/
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisBeing at the races, watching these magnificent animals do what they are born to do is a wonderful experience.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisBut:
If you have ever taken a close, behind the scenes look at horse racing you will undoubtedly conclude that it is cruelty to animals.
These horses are so terribly inbred for the ultimate in speed and endurance that they are fragile and temperamental. They break down far too often and must be put down. They do not make good saddle horses and I don't want to mention what happens to those who are slow or old.
I'm not against exploitation of animals per se but having seen what frequently happens behind the scenes I stopped going to the races.
This genetic testing is just one more example of the way that these animals are used, abused, and cast aside if they do not measure up.
1) Horse Racing is a closed system. To race at the Kentucky Derby (Triple Crown race number one) the horse must be a registerd thorougbred. A thorougbred traces its ancestry back to 3 Arabian/Turkoman/Barb stallions and English mares in the 17th and 18th centuries. Imagine the 1,500 meters at the Olympics and the only people who could race are 18 year olds of British ancestry. No others may apply.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this2) Only one world record at any distance on turf or dirt was set by a 3 year old (see below). All others are 4 to 7 years old. Why 3 year olds? Because they can breed longer. Very simple. Everything I have read or heard first hand suggest that 3 year olds are too young and injuries are higher at that age.
http://www.horsehats.com/horse-racing-records.html
3) I have asked many horse folks why they race. Answer: to improve the breed. Who cares.
4) Want to have faster horses and more variety. Try modern genetics, modern training methods with cross breeding every horse imaginable and limit racing to 4 to 8 year olds. There will be less money in the sport, but I personally would love to watch an Apaloosa/QuarterHorse/Arabian hybrid, for example clobber the thoroughbreds.
5) I am not a horse expert. Having said that I don't believe there is much that I have written above that is too far off base. I would love to have an unbiased horse expert comment to see if my suggestions make any sense. Maybe they don't, but in a few hours I'll be glued to the television to watch the Kentucky Derby anyway, hoping for the new Secretariat, no injuries and a fun race.
Seems they are late to the party. Genetics have been
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisemployed for quite some time on all kinds of creatures.
It is the future of all living things we consume. Perhaps
genetics will help to rid the world of inherited diseases and conditions in both humans and animals. That would
represent real progress in the evolution we have out
grown through technology and medicine.
I think research in genetics could only make horse racing better for the horses. If it was utilized more often, maybe breeders wouldn't have to produce so many horses. They could focus on producing a few genetically superior foals instead of playing more of a guessing game. One of the biggest problems in the industry is the overpopulation of horses. The ones who aren't worth as much end up in slaughter houses because thoroughbreds aren't good for much but racing. If there were fewer horses, fewer horses would meet a fate in the processing plant. Maybe by making the breed better, there would be fewer casualties. I don't know, I'm trying to see the positive side of this. There are definitely some things about the racing industry that need to change. I'm not disputing that at all, but progress being made and I think this genetic research could potentially help. I really hope it does.
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