Sergio Sanchez, a third-year Ph.D. student with the UGA Animal Breeding & Genetics team, has been awarded the 2025 Lauren L. Christian Memorial Graduate Student Award at the National Swine Improvement Federation (NSIF) meeting.
Sergio’s research focuses on uncovering the genetic basis of digital phenotypes. Among his key findings, he observed that this technology is particularly beneficial for subjective traits, as it increases their heritability and reveals associations between production and conformation traits that were not observed with traditional phenotyping methods. His work provides a strong foundation for integrating digital phenotyping into modern swine breeding programs.
At the same event, Dr. Ignacy Misztal, UGA Distinguished Professor, delivered an invited talk highlighting the group’s pioneering research in advanced genetic evaluation.
Congratulations, Sergio, on this well-deserved recognition!
