Animal Traits Correlation Database (CorrDB)

QTLdb and CorrDB functionality may be coming to an end

The QTLdb and CorrDB are no longer actively funded. This means that in the near future, these data and associated tools will no longer be actively updated unless additional funding sources are identified. QTLdb and CorrDB have been actively funded by grants for more than 20 and 10 years respectively. We will continue to search for alternative funding sources and will provide additional updates when these resources move to a static state.

Release 24
(Apr 25, 2025)

Animal Trait Correlation Database

Genetic and phenotypic trait correlation studies have been conducted for decades since Hazel proposed the methods in 1943. A genetic correlation is the proportion of shared variance between two traits that is due to genetic causes; a phenotypic correlation is the degree to which two traits co-vary among individuals in a population. In the genomics era, while gene expression, genetic association, and network analysis provide unprecedented means to decode the genetic basis of complex phenotypes, it is important to recognize the possible effects genetic progress in one trait can have on other traits. This database is designed to collect all published livestock genetic/phenotypic trait correlation data, aimed at facilitating genetic network analysis or systems biology studies.

As of the current Release, a total of 43,995 correlation data on 939 base traits and 1506 trait variants; 7,416 heritability data on 1,158 base traits and 1517 trait variants, in 6 livestock animal species have been curated from 751 publications.

Cattle

Chicken

Goat

Horse

Pig

Sheep

Release 24: Curated Data
Species	Correlations		Heritability
Species	Count	Traits	Count	Traits
Cattle	17,064	370	2,998	424
Chicken	3,796	93	628	155
Goat	3,991	90	519	85
Horse	224	30	142	57
Pig	13,030	240	2,081	285
Sheep	5,890	116	1,048	152
Sum	43,995	939	7,416	1,158

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Correlation by unique trait pairs by species
	Cattle	Chicken	Goat	Horse	Pig	Sheep	SUM
Environment	282 (709)	55 (55)	5 (25)	1 (2)	26 (217)	42 (178)	411 (1,186)
Genetic	3,354 (8,885)	506 (1,549)	510 (1,748)	80 (120)	2,018 (7,020)	773 (2,858)	7,241 (22,180)
Phenotypic	3,647 (6,950)	610 (2,192)	742 (2,151)	56 (87)	1,962 (5,602)	684 (2,631)	7,701 (19,613)
Residual	359 (520)		10 (67)	12 (15)	39 (191)	32 (223)	452 (1,016)
SUM	7,642 (17,064)	1,171 (3,796)	1,267 (3,991)	149 (224)	4,045 (13,030)	1,531 (5,890)	15,805 (43,995)
Note: Bold numbers represent counts of correlation trait pairs; In parenthesis are counts of multiple correlations reported.

Heritability data reported by species

Pig

# Reports	Cattle Traits
147	Milk yield
136	Body weight
90	Subcutaneous fat thickness
64	Longissimus muscle area
61	Milk fat yield
60	Average daily gain
58	Milk protein yield
50	Somatic cell score
48	Marbling score
44	Milk protein percentage
44	Carcass weight
44	Milk fat percentage
40	Scrotal circumference
37	Dry matter intake
36	Body height
34	Residual feed intake
29	Calving to conception interval
28	Shear force
28	Interval to first estrus after calving
28	Clinical mastitis
27	Calving interval
25	Age at first calving
23	Intramuscular fat
21	Metabolic body weight
20	Interval from first to last insemination
20	Teat placement
18	Sperm motility
18	Inseminations per conception
18	Body condition score
17	Rump width
17	Body circumference
17	Udder depth
17	Udder cleft
16	Muscularity
16	Udder attachment
16	Gestation length
15	Milk lactose yield
15	Stature
15	Dressing percentage
14	Milk lactose content
14	M. paratuberculosis susceptibility
14	Yield grade
14	Body depth
14	Non-return rate
14	Udder height
14	Conformation score
13	Semen volume
13	Conception rate
13	Meat color
13	Milk palmitic acid content
13	Milk myristic acid content
13	Milk oleic acid content
13	Milk stearic acid content
12	Milk capric acid content
12	Milk lauric acid content
12	Feet and leg conformation
12	Milk saturated fatty acid content

# Reports	Chicken Traits
99	Body weight
35	Egg number
35	Egg weight
18	Shank length
16	Abdominal fat weight
14	Eggshell strength
14	Carcass weight
13	Abdominal fat percentage
12	Shank circumference
11	Age at first egg
11	Feed intake
10	Residual feed intake
10	Gizzard weight
10	Liver weight
10	Average daily gain
9	Eggshell thickness
8	Heart weight
8	Feed conversion ratio
7	Albumen height
7	Body weight gain
7	Eggshell shape
7	Breast muscle weight
6	Meat color
6	Eggshell color
5	Breast muscle percentage
4	Comb height
4	Drumstick weight
4	Triglyceride level
4	Blood globulin level
4	Keel length
4	Eggshell stiffness
4	Blood bile acid level
4	Proventriculus weight
4	Haugh units
4	Blood albumin to globulin ratio
4	Blood uric acid level
3	Blood alanine transaminase level
3	Wooden breast
3	Blood aspartate transaminase level
3	HDL/LDL ratio
3	LDL cholesterol level
3	Chest width
3	Blood creatinine level
3	Blood gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase level
3	AST to ALT ratio
3	Feathering
3	Body slope length
3	HDL cholesterol level
3	Intramuscular fat percentage
3	Spleen weight
3	Eggshell cuticle coverage
3	Intestine length
3	Cholesterol level
3	Wing weight
3	Testes weight
3	Muscle pH
3	Blood total protein level

# Reports	Goat Traits
75	Body weight
35	Milk yield
31	Average daily gain
26	Kleiber ratio
25	Kidding interval
20	Age at first kidding
15	Milk protein yield
15	Milk fat yield
14	Body height
14	Somatic cell score
13	Body circumference
13	Body length
10	Milk fat percentage
10	Milk protein percentage
9	Offspring number
7	Udder attachment
7	Milk protein-to-fat ratio
6	Fecal egg count
5	Milk protein content
5	Hematocrit
5	Litter weight, total
5	Teat placement
5	Milk fat content
4	Milk conjugated linoleic acid content
4	Milk octadecenoic acid content
4	Sperm motility
4	Milk monounsaturated fatty acid content
4	Milk capric acid content
4	Milk butyric acid content
4	Milk lauric acid content
4	Medial suspensory ligament
4	Milk omega-6 fatty acid content
4	Milk unsaturated fatty acid content
4	Milk polyunsaturated fatty acid content
4	Milk saturated fatty acid content
4	Milk sum of C13:0 to C17:0 fatty acid content
4	Milk palmitic acid content
4	Milk myristic acid content
4	Milk caprylic acid content
4	Milk sum of C4:0 to C10:0 fatty acid content
4	Milk caproic acid content
4	Milk omega-3 fatty acid content
4	Milk stearic acid content
3	Marbling score
3	Teat diameter
3	Milk solids yield
3	Milk lactose yield
3	Udder depth
3	Body condition score
3	Teat angle
3	Teat shape
3	Rear udder height
2	Somatic cell count
2	Lactation persistency
2	Lactation length
2	Teat length
2	Teat number

# Reports	Horse Traits
12	Insect bite hypersensitivity
12	Recurrent exertional rhabdomyolysis
8	Tendon injury
8	Recurrent uveitis
7	Bone fracture
6	Body height
6	Strongyle fecal egg count
4	Suspensory ligament injury
4	Vitiligo
4	Osteoarthritis
3	Strongyle infection
3	twinning
3	Sperm progressive motility
2	Sperm count
2	Hematocrit
2	Epistaxis
2	Skinfold thickness
2	Walk score
2	Hair shaft diameter
2	Hoof conformation
2	Semen volume
2	Lymphocyte number
2	Sperm concentration
2	Body condition score
2	Neutrophil number
2	Conformation score
2	chronic progressive lymphedema
2	Trot score
2	Equine sarcoids
2	Gestation length
2	Leg conformation
1	racing performance
1	Leptin level
1	Plasma protein level
1	Blood lactate level
1	Aspartate aminotransferase activity
1	Blood glucose level
1	Hemoglobin
1	Eosinophil number
1	Blood creatinine level
1	ACTH level
1	Red blood cell number
1	Racing speed
1	Creatine kinase level
1	Insulin level
1	White blood cell number
1	Triglyceride level
1	Blood adiponectin level
1	Chest circumference
1	Cannon bone circumference
1	Uric acid level
1	Number of progressively motile sperm
1	Blood non-esterified fatty acid level
1	hereditary equine regional dermal asthenia
1	Recurrent laryngeal neuropathy
1	Equine neuroaxonal dystrophy/degenerative myeloencephalopathy
1	Lactate dehydrogenase level

# Reports	Pig Traits
320	Offspring number
110	Meat color
101	Subcutaneous fat thickness
81	Average daily gain
38	Muscle pH
32	Body weight
31	Litter weight, total
29	Teat number
29	Feed intake
27	Longissimus muscle area
25	Feed conversion ratio
21	Semen volume
21	Longissimus muscle depth
21	Sperm concentration
20	Sperm abnormality rate
19	Linoleic acid content
19	Oleic acid content
19	Palmitic acid content
19	Stearic acid content
18	Sperm motility
18	Sperm progressive motility
18	Body circumference
18	Palmitoleic acid content
17	Days to 100 kg
17	Time spent in feeder
17	Intramuscular fat content
17	Residual feed intake
17	Myristic acid content
17	Lean meat percentage
16	Polyunsaturated fatty acid content
16	Saturated fatty acid content
16	Monounsaturated fatty acid content
15	Carcass weight (hot)
13	Body length
13	Carcass length
12	Sperm per ejaculate
12	Linolenic acid content
12	Body height
11	Drip loss
10	Cannon bone circumference
10	Eicosadienoic acid content
10	Arachidonic acid content
10	Arachidic acid content
9	Cooking loss
9	Number of functional sperm
9	Number of visits to feeder
9	cis-11-Eicosenoic acid content
9	Water holding capacity
9	Marbling
8	Omega-6 fatty acid content
8	Shear force
8	Days to 105 kg
8	Omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acid ratio
8	Average feeding rate
8	Dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid content
8	Omega-3 fatty acid content
8	Age at first farrowing

# Reports	Sheep Traits
296	Body weight
101	Average daily gain
62	Offspring number
41	Greasy fleece weight
38	Kleiber ratio
37	Staple length
32	Fecal egg count
26	Fleece grade
18	Residual feed intake
17	Feed conversion ratio
13	Mean fiber diameter
13	Subcutaneous fat thickness
11	Body condition score
10	Milk yield
10	Body height
9	Body length
9	Meat color
9	Ocular mucosa coloration
9	Sperm motility
8	Body circumference
7	Sperm concentration
7	Somatic cell score
7	Growth efficiency
7	Semen volume
7	Relative growth rate
7	Longissimus muscle depth
7	Scrotal circumference
6	Litter weight, total
6	Gastrointestinal nematode resistance
6	Longissimus muscle area
6	Hematocrit
5	udder attachment
5	Fiber diameter coefficient of variance
5	Teat placement
5	Fleece yield
5	Teat size
5	Clean fleece weight
5	udder depth
4	Shear force
4	Milk protein percentage
4	somatic cell count
4	Dressing percentage
4	Feed intake
3	Milk protein content
3	Fiber diameter standard deviation
3	Cheese yield
3	Lambing interval
3	Milk fat content
3	Milk protein yield
3	Muscle pH
3	Fecal oocyst count
3	Milk fat percentage
3	Milk fat yield
3	Hot carcass weight
3	Staple strength
2	Cooking loss
2	Longissimus muscle width

New Data: If you found correlation data that has not been included in the current release, please either (1) register for a curator account to directly input them (see "Database Curators / Editors" below), or (2) inform our Bioinformatics Team so that we can include your data for curation.

Database Curators / Editors: The CorrDB is open to the public for data entry and update. By having a curator account on the CorrDB, you will be granted privileges to input and edit the database entries.

Questions and Answers: Frequently asked questions and answers to address the questions raised with regard to the design, usage, application, utilities, new developments, and other related issues in the development of CorrDB.

Data downloads:

( Release 24 )

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‣ plain text
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Correlation data: Cattle

Correlation data: Chicken

Correlation data: Goat

Correlation data: Horse

Correlation data: Pig

Correlation data: Sheep

Heritability data: Cattle

Heritability data: Chicken

Heritability data: Goat

Heritability data: Horse

Heritability data: Pig

Heritability data: Sheep

REFERENCE:

Zhi-Liang Hu, Carissa A. Park, and James M. Reecy (2022). Bringing the Animal QTLdb and CorrDB into the future: meeting new challenges and providing updated services. Nucleic Acids Research, Volume 50, Issue D1, Pages D956–D961. DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkab1116

Zhi-Liang Hu, Carissa A. Park, and James M. Reecy (2020). An Update on Database Growth and Improvements of Animal QTLdb and CorrDB. Plant & Animal Genomes XXVII Conference, January 11-15, 2020. Town & Country Convention Center, San Diego, CA. (January 11-15, 2020).

Zhi-Liang Hu, Carissa A. Park, and James M. Reecy (2019). Building a livestock genetic and genomic information knowledgebase through integrative developments of Animal QTLdb and CorrDB. Nucleic Acids Research, Volume 47, Issue D1, 8 January 2019, Pages D701–D710. DOI: 10.1093/nar/gky1084

Zhi-Liang Hu, Carissa A. Park, and James M. Reecy (2018). Development of Animal QTLdb and CorrDB: Resynthesizing Big Data to Improve Meta-analysis of Genetic and Genomic Information. The 11th World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production (WCGALP). New Zealand, February 11-16, 2018.

Zhi-Liang Hu, Carissa A. Park, and James M. Reecy (2018). Animal QTLdb and CorrDB updates: integrative development of genetics/genomics databases and tools to meet new challenges. Plant & Animal Genomes XXVI Conference, January 13-17, 2018. Town & Country Convention Center, San Diego, CA.

Zhi-Liang Hu, Dinesh Kumar, and James Reecy. (2013). CorrDB: A livestock animal genetic/phenotypic trait correlation database. Plant & Animal Genomes XX Conference, January 11-16, 2013. Town & Country Convention Center, San Diego, CA.|/icons/links/PAG_logo.png|2

Related resources:

· VT | LPT | LBO | CMO ·

· MIQAS ·

· MIBBI ·

· MI ·

· QTLdb ·