FOR 753: Genetic-Functional Regulation of the Waterholding Capacity of Pig Meat

猪肉的持水率是一个复杂的数量性状，是衡量屠宰后猪肉发育状况的重要技术指标。由于滴水损失，在屠体或切割过程中会出现高度的重量损失。保水性受到基因、肌肉结构和新陈代谢、环境(生长、饲养)、动物屠宰前处理方式以及屠宰前和死后屠体和肉类处理条件的影响。研究单位专注于基因组区域或基因的结构和功能鉴定，这些区域或基因会影响猪肉的滴水损失。此外，我们希望更深入地了解导致WHC变化的生理/病理生理学机制。我们使用结构基因组(5号染色体和18号染色体上的水滴-QTL的精细定位)和功能基因组(表型的蛋白质组和转录组图谱-滴水丢失、钙和能量代谢、肌纤维特性以及水滴丢失-分叉肌肉的基因-QTL和eQTL)方法来识别和验证候选基因。所有的研究都是在一个完全具有表型特征的杜洛克-皮特兰资源家族的背最长肌中进行的，该家族已经在100多个标记上进行了基因组扫描。利用这些表型/功能(滴漏、钙和能量代谢)和遗传型(QTL滴漏)不同的样本，进行蛋白质组(整体和差异)和转录研究(全球和区域特异微阵列，eQTL鉴定)，以确定与性状相关的候选蛋白质和基因。这些基因的进一步特征是结构和功能分析。所有获得的数据都被输入一个基于可扩展标记语言的数据库系统，并利用最新的生物信息学知识进行集中处理。我们的计划与肌肉生物学、肉类科学、生物化学、动物育种和生物信息学的合作伙伴一起，使功能遗传分析的重点跨学科方法能够揭示猪肉持水能力的遗传功能基础。这些基础知识将大大增加通过育种策略改善肉类品质的作用。

The water holding capacity (WHC) of pig meat is a complex quantitative trait and a crucial technological quality parameter indicating proper meat development after slaughter. Due to drip loss, high weight wastages occur in carcasses or cuts. WHC is influenced from the genotype, the muscle structure and metabolism, the environment (growth, feeding), the pre-slaughter handling of the animals and by the pre- and post mortal conditions of carcass and meat treatment. The Research Unit focusses on structural and functional identification of genome regions or genes, which influence drip loss in pork meat. Further, we want to get more insight into the physiological/pathophysiological mechanisms leading to the variation in WHC. We use structural genomic (fine mapping of DRIP-QTL on chromosome 5 and 18) and functional genomic (proteom and transcriptome profiles of phenotypically - drip loss, Ca 2+ and energy metabolism, muscle fiber traits - and genotypically - QTL and eQTL for drip loss - divergent muscles) approaches to identify and verify candidate genes. All the investigations are done in the musculus longissimus dorsi of a phenotypically fully characterised Duroc-Pietrain resource family, which has been genome scanned on more than 100 markers. With these phenotypically/functional (drip loss, calcium and energy metabolism) and genotypically (QTL drip loss) different samples, proteom (holistic and differential) and transcriptomstudies (global and regional specific microarrays, eQTL identification) are performed to identify trait associated candidate proteins and gene. These genes are further characterised by structural and functional analyses. All obtained data are implemented into a XML-based database system and centrally processed using up to date bioinformatic knowledge. Our programme with partners from muscle biology, meat science, biochemistry, animal breeding and bioinformatics enables a focussed interdisciplinary approach of functional genetic analyses to unravel the genetic functional basis of the water holding capacity of pig meat. This basic knowledge will add significantly to improve meat quality by breeding strategies.