SheepHeatIT

Sheep farming is a cornerstone of food security, rural livelihoods, and cultural heritage, yet it is increasingly threatened by climate change. Rising temperatures and increased frequency of hot weather extreme events risks fertility, milk and meat yield and quality, and survival rates, pushing herds and farmers toward economic collapse. Current mitigation, if any, relies on costly infrastructure that is neither sustainable nor widely accessible. SheepHeatIT project proposes a breakthrough, multi-player international research-driven strategy: breeding sheep with enhanced resilience to heat stress while safeguarding productivity, biodiversity, and farmer income. We will develop rapid, low-cost phenotyping tools and integrate them with high-throughput genotyping to build multi-breed datasets across diverse regions (~18,000 animals, 24 breeds, and 8 regions). We will uncover the physiological, molecular, and genetic mechanisms involved in heat response by applying advanced multi-omics approaches. These insights will enable adding newly discovered SNPs to existing chips to guide breeding programs aiming to increase herd heat resistance score (hHRS). This strategy will be supported by exploring genome editing for higher heat resilience by targeting potential alleles. Outcomes will raise hHRS, reduce the risk of agricultural collapse, and deliver a long-term, climate-ready future for sheep farming worldwide. The research will ensure conservation of local breeds, secure animal welfare and promise better sustainability. Outcomes will include a new SNP-based selection index, practical breeding guidelines, and an open-access Information Technology Centre Platform hosting data, tools, and protocols.