JNS test from Genetic Visions-ST™️ is made official by AJCA

MIDDLETON, Wisc. — The American Jersey Cattle Association has designated the JNS test from livestock genomic testing leader and innovator Genetic Visions-ST™ as its official test for Jersey Neuropathy with Splayed Forelimbs (JNS) in an animal’s genetic code.

JNS is an undesirable genetic trait that produces Jersey calves unable to stand because of splayed forelimbs. Calves with JNS are born alive and appear to be healthy but they have neurological issues causing loss of feeling in their front legs. Affected calves lay with their front legs stretched in front of their bodies. Healthy calves lay with their legs bent underneath their bodies. JNS is haplotype and when first found can be eliminated in future generations through selective breeding of animals using genomic testing. The Genetic Visions-ST™ JNS test is a precise test identifying animals that have the JNS trait and is more exact than haplotype selection, which is not 100 percent accurate.

“We realize the bottom-line costs mutations like JNS inflict on dairy producers,” says Alan Mileham, Genetic Visions-ST™ Senior Researcher and one of the team leaders who created the JNS test. “The faster the Jersey breed can rid itself of the JNS condition, the faster the breed will remove the mutation. If Jersey breeders take their testing seriously, JNS will quickly become a disease of the past.”

Producers can currently purchase the stand-alone JNS test but soon will be able to access the test through the suite of Vision+™ genomic tests. For more information on the JNS test, expanded genomic testing, or sample submission, contact Avery Kotlarczyk, avery.kotlarczyk@geneticvisions.com, (608).662.9170 Ext. 3101