Genetic progress in domestic animals is of key importance for animal husbandry, as improving animal characteristics increases breeding productivity, which is important to meet the food needs of a rapidly growing human population. Over the centuries, genetic progress in animals has been achieved through a system of selection and crossbreeding (traditional methods), but more recently gene editing technologies have gained prominence in this area, as they allow for rapid and more precise genetic progress in domestic animals compared to traditional breeding methods. Gene editing technologies allow scientists to make targeted genetic changes to DNA, from gene knockouts, small deletions and insertions to the insertion of new genes. Various types of gene editing technologies have been developed and the methods improved over time, but the greatest advances in this field have been made in the last decade with the optimization of CRISPR technology. The latter offers tremendous opportunities to make genetic modifications to the genome of domestic animals, leading to a variety of economically interesting applications (e.g., improving the resistance of animals to diseases, increasing production, improving reproductive characteristics, etc.). However, there are still many methodological challenges to overcome and various ethical dilemmas to solve on the way to a wider application of this technology. Gene editing technologies therefore hold enormous potential for animal husbandry, but further research and a broader ethical discussion are needed in the future.
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