• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.530-536
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• 2011

It is well established that uncoupling protein 3 (UCP3) is expressed largely in skeletal muscle, white adipose tissue and brown adipose tissue and has been suggested to play important roles in regulating energy expenditure, body weight, thermoregulation as well as fatty acid metabolism and obesity. Therefore, the UCP3 gene was selected as a candidate gene for carcass and meat quality traits in Korean cattle. The objective of this study was to identify single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the UCP3 gene and to evaluate the association of UCP3 SNP markers with carcass and meat quality traits in Korean cattle. The five exons in the UCP3 gene were sequenced, and ten SNPs were identified. The PCR-SSCP method was then developed to genotype the individuals examined. The g.3076A>G genotype was significantly associated with marbling score (MS) of Korean cattle. Animals with the AA genotype had a higher MS than those with the AG and GG genotypes. No significant associations of the SNP g.3076A>G were observed for any traits. In conclusion, although SNP g.3076A>G, which showed an association with MS, does not cause amino acid changes, this SNP may be used as a DNA marker to select animals that have higher intramuscular fat content.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.23-28
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• 2016

The Fas (APO-1, TNFRSF6) gene known as a member of the tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily was selected for DNA marker development in Korean cattle. It is a cell membrane protein and mediates programmed cell death (apoptosis). We discovered single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within Fas gene in order to develop novel DNA markers related to economical traits at the genomic level. The sequences of whole exon and 1 kb range of both front and back of the gene were determined by direct-sequencing methods using 24 cattle. A total of 55 SNPs were discovered and we selected 31 common polymorphic sites considering their allele frequencies, haplotype-tagging status and linkage disequilibrium (LD) for genotyping in larger-scale subjects. The SNPs were confirmed genotype through the SNaPshot method (n = 274) and were examined for a possible genetic association between Fas polymorphisms and marbling score. So, the SNPs that were identified significant are g.30256G>C, g.31474C>A, g.31940A>G, and g.32982G>A. These results suggest that SNPs of Fas gene were associated with intramuscular fat content of meat quality traits in Korean cattle.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.32 no.12
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• pp.1923-1932
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• 2019

Objective: We investigated visual marbling level (VML) influence on pork loin physicochemical traits, consumer palatability responses, VML liking, purchase intent, and their relationships. Methods: For each of five slaughtering dates, at 24-h postmortem, nine paired Duroc castrated male boneless Longissimus dorsi (LD) muscles were categorized into low (LM, score 1 to 2, n = 3), medium (MM, score 3 to 4, n = 3), and high (HM, score 5 to 6, n = 3) VML. Meat physicochemical quality traits and consumer responses (n = 389) on palatability and VML liking, and purchase intent were evaluated. The experiment was in randomized complete block design. Analysis of variance, Duncan's multiple mean comparisons, and correlation coefficients were determined. Results: VML correspond to crude fat (r = 0.91, p<0.01), but both were reversely related to moisture content (r = -0.75 and -0.91, p<0.01, respectively). As VML increased, ash (p<0.05) and protein (p = 0.072) decreased, pH and $b^{\star}$ increased (p<0.05), but drip, cooking (p<0.05) and thawing (p = 0.088) losses decreased. Among treatments, muscle fiber diameter, sarcomere length, total and insoluble collagen contents, $L^{\star}$, and $a^{\star}$ did not differ (p>0.05). Compared to the others, HM had lower collagen solubility percentage (p<0.05), but similar (p>0.05) Warner-Bratzler shear force (WBSF). No differences (p>0.05) were found in juiciness, overall flavor, oiliness, and overall acceptability, but HM was more tender (p<0.05) than the others. Based on VML, consumers preferred MM to HM (p<0.05), while LM was similar to MM and HM (p>0.05). Corresponding to VML preference (r = 0.45, p<0.01), consumers (83%) would (p<0.01) definitely and probably buy MM, over LM (74%), and HM (68%), respectively. Conclusion: Increasing VML in pork LD altered its chemical composition, slightly increased pH, and improved water holding capacity, thereby improving its tenderness acceptability. Marbling might reduce chewing resistance, as lower collagen solubility in HM did not impact tenderness acceptability and WBSF. While HM was rated as most tender, consumers visually preferred and would purchase MM.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.240-251
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• 2022

Fat deposition in animal muscles differs according to the genetics and muscle anatomical locations. Moreover, different fat to lean muscle ratios (quality grade, QG) might contribute to aroma development in highly marbled beef. Scientific evidence is required to determine whether the abundance of aroma volatiles is positively correlated with the amount of fat in highly marbled beef. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the effect of QG on beef aroma profile using electronic nose data and a chemometric approach. An electronic nose with metal oxide semiconductors was used, and discrimination was performed using multivariate analysis, including principal component analysis and hierarchical clustering. The M. longissimus lumborum (striploin) of QG 1++, 1+, 1, and 2 of Hanwoo steers (n=6), finished under identical feeding systems on similar farms, were used. In contrast to the proportion of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), the abundance of volatile compounds and the proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) decreased as the QG increased. The aroma profile of striploin from carcasses of different QGs was well-discriminated. QG1++ was close to QG1+, while QG1 and QG2 were within a cluster. In conclusion, aroma development in beef is strongly influenced by fat deposition, particularly the fat-to-lean muscle ratio with regard to the proportion of PUFA. As MUFA slows down the oxidation and release of volatile compounds, leaner beef containing a higher proportion of PUFA produces more volatile compounds than beef with a higher amount of intramuscular fat.

• BMB Reports
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• v.41 no.12
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• pp.846-851
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• 2008

This study was conducted to identify marbling-related candidate genes in M. longissimus dorsi of high- and low-marbled Hanwoo. The longissimus dorsi muscles were selected for gene expression from eight Hanwoo steer carcasses based on crude fat content. In the analysis of variance, gene expression of five candidate genes, FABP4, SCD, $PPAR\gamma$, Titin and Nebulin was determined to be significantly different between high- and low-marbled Hanwoo steers (P < 0.0001). The Pik-4 and CaMK II genes were also shown to have a significant effect on crude fat content (P < 0.01). In the analysis of the differential expression between high- and low marbled groups, FABP4 gene expression was approximately 2 times higher in the high marbled group relative to the low marbled group. However, the $PPAR\gamma$ and SCD gene were highly expressed in the low marbled group. In addition, Titin and Nebulin were highly expressed in the low marbled group when placed under relatively high shear force. Finally, the Pik-4 and CaM K II gene also displayed a high expression pattern in the low marbled group.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.28 no.8
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• pp.1084-1089
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• 2015

Chemerin, highly expressed in adipose and liver tissues, regulates glucose and lipid metabolism and immunity in these tissues in ruminants and mice. Our previous reports showed that chemerin is involved in adipogenesis and lipid metabolism in adipose tissue as an adipokine. The aim of the present study was to identify single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the coding region of the chemerin gene and to analyze their effects on carcass traits and intramuscular fatty acid compositions in Japanese Black cattle. The SNPs in the bovine chemerin gene were detected in 232 Japanese Black steers (n = 161) and heifers (n = 71) using DNA sequencing. The results revealed five novel silent mutations: NM_001046020: c.12A>G (4aa), c.165GT (92aa), c.321 A>G (107aa), and c.396C>T (132aa). There was no association between 4 of the SNPs (c.12A>G [4aa], c.165GG [107aa], and c.396C>T) and carcass traits or intramuscular fatty acid compositions. Regarding the remaining SNP, c.276C>T, we found that cattle with genotype CC had a higher beef marbling score than that of cattle with genotype CT, whereas cattle with genotype CT had a higher body condition score (p<0.10). Further, cattle with genotype CC had significantly higher C18:0 content in their intramuscular fat tissue than that of cattle with genotype CT (p<0.05). On the other hand, cattle with genotype CT had significantly higher C14:0 and C16:0 content in their intramuscular fat tissue (p<0.05). Moreover, the number of individuals carrying the minor allele of c.276C>T SNP is small. It is suggested that the c.276C>T SNP of the chemerin gene has potential in cattle breeding using modern methods, such as marker assisted selection. So, further functional and physiological research elucidating the impact of the chemerin gene on bovine lipid metabolism including fatty acid synthesis will help in understanding these results.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.36 no.5
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• pp.679-688
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• 2016

The aim of this research was to evaluate: 1) the fatty acid profile of ten muscles from high marbled (HM, quality grade 1⁺⁺) and low marbled (LM, quality grade 2) Hanwoo carcass, 2) the relationship between the fatty acid profile and sensory traits. There were significant (p<0.001) differences in fat content and fatty acid composition among the 10 muscles obtained from HM and LM Hanwoo steers. The proportions of SFA (saturated fatty acid), MUFA (monounsaturated fatty acid) and PUFA (polyunsaturated fatty acid) were significantly (p<0.001) different among the 10 muscles due to differences in all fatty acids except eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, C20:5n-3). The high-fat muscles had a lower n-6/n-3 ratio compared to the low-fat muscles (p<0.001). LM muscles had a significantly (p<0.05) higher proportion of SFA than HM muscles due to a higher proportion of stearic acid (C18:0). On the contrary, HM muscles had a significantly (p<0.01) higher proportion of MUFA than LM muscles due to higher oleic acid (C18:1n-9) proportion. SFA had a significant correlation with CIE a* (r=0.281; p<0.01) and drip loss (%) (r=−0.233; p<0.001). Cooking loss (%) had a significantly (p<0.05) negative correlation with PUFA (r=−0.233; p<0.05). Overall palatability was positively correlated with SFA (r=0.262; p<0.01), but negatively correlated with PUFA (r=−0.567; p<0.001). There was no significant correlation between oleic acid and any of the sensory traits (p>0.05).

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.382-386
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• 2007

The association between the promoter region genotypes of the porcine adipocyte fatty acid binding protein (A-FABP) gene and carcass traits in commercial pigs was examined. Interestingly, only two different genotypes (-406T/T and T/C) for the A-FABP gene were detected using Hinf-RFLP for the substitution mutation T-406C in the A-FABP promoter in commercial pigs, and no -406C/C homozygotes were detected. The reason for the lack of the -406 C/C genotype is due to the breeding system in which only Duroc, which has a high frequency of -406C/- in this locus among the three breeds involved in commercial pig production, is typically used as a terminal sire. The pigs containing the genotype -406C/- were significantly associated with an increase in intramuscula. fat content and carcass weight (p<0.05), but there was no association with the other carcass traits tested (fat composition, color score, texture score, moisture, and separation score between muscles). This study suggests that the -406C/- genotype of the porcine A-FABP gene may not only be a useful molecular marker for intramuscular fat, but may also contribute to the improvement of meat quality by the production of well-marbled pigs by breeding animals containing this genotype, especially Duroc, as a terminal sire for commercial pigs.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.33 no.12
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• pp.987-994
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• 2023

This study examined the associations between the genotypes of the galactose mutarotase (GALM) gene and carcass traits in the Hanwoo population of Jeju Island, South Korea. The GALM genotypes were determined by the 14-bp (5'-GGTCTAATGACCAG-3') insertion/deletion (InDel) polymorphisms of the 3'-untranslated region (UTR). All three genotypes (LL, LS, and SS) were found in the Hanwoo steer population. The association analysis showed significant associations between genotypes and several carcass traits, including traits related to intramuscular fat content, such as meat quality, marbling score, and backfat thickness (p<0.05). Animals harboring the SS genotype showed not only higher levels of intramuscular fat content but also lower levels of backfat thickness than animals harboring the LL and LS genotypes. On the other hand, no significant associations were found between the GALM genotypes and carcass weight, eye muscle area, meat color, or fat color (p>0.05). Deleting the 14-bp segment in the 3'-UTR resulted in the modification of the secondary structure of RNA and appeared to affect gene expression by interfering with the binding ability of GALM mRNA with RNA-binding proteins and microRNAs. These results suggest that the 14-bp InDel polymorphism in the 3'-UTR region of the GALM gene affects cattle growth traits and carcass quality through galactose metabolism-mediated fat accumulation in muscle and backfat tissues.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.151-157
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• 2015

Fatness qualities in pigs measured by the amount of fat deposition and composition of fatty acids (FAs) in pork have considerable effect on current breeding goals. The stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD) gene plays a crucial role in the conversion of saturated FAs into monounsaturated FAs (MUFAs), and hence, is among the candidate genes responsible for pig fatness traits. Here, we identified a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP, $c.^*2041T$ >C) in the 3' untranslated region by direct sequencing focused on coding and regulatory regions of porcine SCD. According to the association analysis using a hundred of Berkshire pigs, the SNP was significantly associated with FA composition (MUFAs and polyunsaturated FAs [PUFAs]), polyunsaturated to saturated (P:S) FA ratio, n-6:n-3 FA ratio, and extent of fat deposition such as intramuscular fat and marbling (p<0.05). In addition, the SNP showed a significant effect on the SCD mRNA expression levels (p = 0.041). Based on our results, we suggest that the SCD $c.^*2041T$ >C SNP plays a role in the gene regulation and affects the fatness qualities in Berkshire pigs.