Agrotecnio and IRTA are studying, in the project EPIHEALTH, the relationship between epigenetics and the natural ability of some pigs to cope with stressful situations without negatively affecting their performance. The aim is to identify epigenetic marks that may be related to the animals’ resilience—that is, their ability to maintain their performance in the face of unforeseen situations that may affect them.
Resilience is a growing area of interest in pig production, since some animals are naturally better able to maintain their performance in adverse situations. Understanding what explains these differences could, in the future, make it possible to improve the accuracy with which resilience is incorporated into genetic selection programs.
What does the project study?
Epigenetics studies changes that regulate gene activity without altering the DNA sequence. Many genes are switched on and off in response to the environment and the stressful situations an animal is exposed to. In this project, researchers are analyzing whether pigs that respond more favorably to different stressful situations also show differences in these epigenetic marks.
The project analyses two populations of Duroc pigs provided by Selección Batallé, a company that is also participating in the initiative. The animals have been exposed to different stressful situations. In one population, during the fattening stage, the available space is reduced and animals from different pens are mixed, simulating the conditions encountered during transport. In the other, the pigs receive a mild immune stimulus (a dose of a vaccine included in their vaccination plan) and are subsequently classified according to their response.
The researchers have analysed blood and liver tissue samples to study DNA methylation patterns, one of the epigenetic mechanisms that can modify gene activity.
Preliminary results
The initial results show differences in the regulation of a very limited group of genes between animals with different levels of response to stress. Some of the genes identified are related to processes such as metabolism, regulation of gene activity, and the immune and inflammatory response. This first step will enable the researchers to focus on looking for genetic variants in this group of genes that explain why the same stimulus (stress) causes different changes in pigs with a more favourable response (resilient pigs) than in pigs that are more susceptible to stress.
The project was presented this Thursday at a new edition of the Breakfast for Inno innovation breakfast series, organised by Agrotecnio, the Universitat de Lleida (UdL), Parc Agrobiotech Lleida and the Diputació de Lleida.
The breakfast was attended by Houda Laghouaouta, a postdoctoral researcher in the Animal Breeding group at Agrotecnio-Universitat de Lleida; Yuliaxis Ramayo, a researcher in computational biology and hologenomics at IRTA; and Sofia Gol, a researcher in genetics and R&D&I at Selección Batallé. The event was moderated by Romi Pena, professor at the Universitat de Lleida and principal investigator of the Animal Breeding group at Agrotecnio.
From epigenetic marks to potential resilience markers
In a second phase, the researchers will combine the results of the epigenetic study with information on gene activity from another project. The aim is to find molecular signatures that make it possible to distinguish animals according to their exposure to stress and the response they show.
Subsequently, these potential markers will be validated in an independent population of pigs from Selección Batallé during an episode of respiratory disease. This will make it possible to check whether the differences identified are also related to the animals’ response to a stressful situation under conditions closer to those found in production settings.
If these results are confirmed, the markers could help identify animals with a greater capacity to cope with certain stressful situations in the future. This knowledge could have applications both in genetic selection and in improving animal management and welfare.
The next session in the Breakfast for Inno series will take place on 12 November at Parc Agrobiotech Lleida and will be dedicated to the AgrifoodTef project.
8 October 2026 - Agrotecnio