UPWr PhD student in one of EAAP bodies

Barbara Kosińska-Selbi is currently the final year doctoral student at the Faculty of Biology and Animal Science of the University of Environmental and Life Sciences in Wrocław. In her research work, she analyses the genetic structure of selected breeds of dairy cattle.

- My research focuses on the analysis of the structure of entire cattle genomes. I am looking for polymorphisms responsible for various types of features important in terms of the welfare and milk performance of cattle. In my recent research, I dealt with the application of association models to determine polymorphisms potentially influencing diseases of legs and hooves – explains Barbara Kosińska-Selbi, who works in prof. Joanna Szyda’s team of biostatisticians.

The team deals with solving genetic predisposition to clinical mastitis on the basis of the sequence of the entire genome of 32 cows, or statistical modelling of resistance to mastitis.

- In addition to the research for my doctorate, I also participated in the ReDiverse project in which I deal with the estimation of economic defects of the Polish Red breed and Polish Holstein-Friesian cattle. Here, I conduct research to estimate the breeding goal for this cattle, using a methodology different to the standard one, which is promoted by the Polish Federation of Cattle Breeders and Milk Producers – says Barbara Kosińska, who has recently become a member of the Cattle Commission in the European Federation of Animal Science. She will work in a team evaluating abstracts that will be submitted to conference meetings attended by scientists from around the world. The PhD student of prof. Szyda intends to get involved in the organization of meetings of the young scientists at the European Federation of Animal Science.

The European Federation of Animal Science is an international non-governmental organization that aims to improve knowledge and disseminate results of husbandry research. Membership is open to scientists, animal breeders and administrators. The association is based in Rome and was established in Paris during the 5th International Congress of Animal Science in 1949. Its founders were Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Iran, Italy, Morocco, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland and Tunisia. Currently it includes members from Europe and the Mediterranean basin. The organization is a co-founder and co-owner of the academic journal "Animal", published by Cambridge University Press. The EAAP chairman in the current term is Matthias Gauly, who has been chairman of the animal science working group at the Faculty of Science and Technology of the Free University of Bolzano in Italy since 2014 and a member of the scientific advisory board for the Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection.

- The Federation has announced recruitment for committee members. For me, it is a chance to establish contacts with scientists from Europe and other regions, and today it is impossible to do science without international contacts. I sent an application in which I presented my research achievements to date, areas of my scientific interests and involvement in both the implementation of grants and scientific conferences. It turns out that the world welcomes the brave – smiles Barbara Kosińska-Selbi, who, being in the Cattle Committee, will be one of the people responsible for organizing the largest international conference organized by the EAAP. Last year it was supposed to take place in August in Portugal, but due to the pandemic it was organized in December on-line. This year it is planned in Switzerland, but it is not yet known whether it will be possible to organize it in academic conditions or remotely.

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