Identification of Genes for Carcass Merit and Meat Quality in the Pig

Advances in the fields of molecular genetics and genomics have been considerable over the past several years. Recent discoveries in human genetics and in molecular biology have led to the development of a very useful genetic map of the pig. Several recent quantitative trait loci (QTL) scans and candidate gene analyses have identified important chromosomal regions and individual genes associated with carcass and meat quality traits. The causative mutations for porcine stress syndrome (HAL or RYR1) and the acid meat (RN) disorder, both with effects on meat quality are now known. Candidate genes for carcass merit (MC4R) and meat quality (PRKAG3, CAST) have also been identified. The commercial pig industry is actively using this information and traditional performance information to improve meat quality by marker assisted selection (MAS). Research to study the coexpression of thousands of genes is now advancing and methods to combine these approaches to aid in candidate gene discovery are underway. This research will aid in our understanding of genetic systems and how to manipulate their relationships to simultaneously improve pig production along with meat quality.