Since decades, production traits such as growth rate, feed efficiency or body composition have been drastically increased in pigs by genetic selection. Whether this selection impacted animal robustness is still unclear. In this study, we compared Large White (LW) pigs, a breed submitted to intense genetic selection for production traits, and Basque (B) pigs, a local rustic breed, reared in two ...

The objective of this work was to evaluate the growth performance, feed intake, slaughter characteristics, meat quantity and quality characteristics of Hanwoo steers fed with Italian ryegrass (IRG) silage (TRT). IRG silage consisted 11.70% protein, 2.84% ether extract, 53.50% dry matter digestibility and 63.34% total digestible nutrients. The daily weight gain and feed conversion ratio of TRT w...

Associations between polymorphisms in candidate genes and economically important meat quality traits were assessed in a commercial population of Aberdeen Angus-cross animals. A number of traits were measured including 20 carcass and sirloin measurements recorded shortly after slaughter and also following maturation, 1 mechanical measure of tenderness and 7 taste panel assessed sensory traits. P...

Male Holstein (15) and female crossbred (15) calves, weaned from milk replacer at the end of experimental week 8, were fattened on a maize silage and concentrate diet (MSC). As a control 14 male Holstein calves were conventionally fattened on milk replacer only. The control calves reached the target slaughter weight of about 135 kg after 24.5 weeks and the MSC males after 28 weeks. The female M...

the study evaluated the body weight during growth (bwg), body weight at slaughter (bws), breast meat yield (bmyg), percent breast meat yield (bmy) and breast meat quality (colour and drip loss) of genetically featherless (scsc) broilers compared to their feathered sibs under hot conditions. two hundred featherless chicks and 200 feathered sibs were reared under hot conditions in two rooms (aver...

BACKGROUND Uncoupling proteins 2 (UCP2) plays an important role in energy regulation, previous studies suggested that UCP2 is an excellent candidate gene for human obesity and growth-related traits in cattle and chicks. The current study was designed to detect the genetic variation of UCP2 gene, and to explore the association between polymorphism of UCP2 gene and growth, carcass and meat qualit...