Frezarim Gabriela B, Mota Lucio F M, Fonseca Larissa F S, Salatta Bruna M, Arikawa Leonardo M, Schmidt Patrícia I, Silva Danielly B S, Albuquerque Lucia G
Department of Animal Science, School of Agricultural and Veterinarian Sciences, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Jaboticabal, SP, 14884-900, Brazil.
National Council for Science and Technological Development, Brasilia, DF, 71605-001, Brazil.
Sci Rep. 2025 Mar 26;15(1):10467. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-93714-x.
Understanding the biological factors that influence carcass and meat quality traits in Nellore cattle requires a clear interpretation of molecular complexity and its variations at different levels of expression. Hence, this study aimed to elucidate the biological control of carcass and meat quality traits in Nellore cattle by integrating genome-wide association study (GWAS), transcriptomic, and proteomic data, focusing on identifying key genes and pathways. GWAS analysis was performed using weighted single-step GBLUP with two iterations. RNA-Seq and proteomic analyses were performed on 24 muscle samples from animals with divergent adjusted phenotypic values (12 for high and 12 for low), for meat tenderness, ribeye area (REA), marbling, and backfat thickness (BFT). The phenotypic values were adjusted for the systematic effects of contemporary groups and age. Differential expression analyses indicated that genes associated with the promotion of growth processes, such as FRZB, IGFBP5 and SEMA6C, exhibited overexpression within the group characterized by higher meat tenderness that inhibits cellular cycles and growth (RTN4 and RB1) were downregulated. Proteins related to heat shock, structural functions, and metabolic regulation also affected the higher meat tenderness group. For marbling, actin-binding proteins, microtubule-forming proteins, and structural proteins were downregulated, while genes involved in fatty acid composition and synthesis were upregulated, with the key genes and transcripts CAND1, ACTN4, FGFR2, and NCOR2 identified. For BFT, neuronal genes, transcripts, and proteins associated with actin cytoskeleton organization and microtubule formation were found. Key genes related to ubiquitination, regulation of energy metabolism, and tissue remodeling were also identified. These findings provide a better understanding of genes, transcripts, proteins, and metabolic pathways involved in carcass and meat quality traits in Nellore cattle.
了解影响内洛尔牛胴体和肉质性状的生物学因素，需要清晰地解读分子复杂性及其在不同表达水平上的变化。因此，本研究旨在通过整合全基因组关联研究（GWAS）、转录组学和蛋白质组学数据，阐明内洛尔牛胴体和肉质性状的生物学控制机制，重点是识别关键基因和信号通路。GWAS分析使用加权单步GBLUP进行了两次迭代。对来自具有不同调整后表型值（高值和低值各12个）的动物的24个肌肉样本进行了RNA测序和蛋白质组分析，这些表型值涉及肉嫩度、眼肌面积（REA）、大理石花纹和背膘厚度（BFT）。对当代组和年龄的系统效应进行了表型值调整。差异表达分析表明，与促进生长过程相关的基因，如FRZB、IGFBP5和SEMA6C，在肉嫩度较高的组中表现出过表达，而抑制细胞周期和生长的基因（RTN4和RB1）则下调。与热休克、结构功能和代谢调节相关的蛋白质也影响了肉嫩度较高的组。对于大理石花纹，肌动蛋白结合蛋白、微管形成蛋白和结构蛋白下调，而参与脂肪酸组成和合成的基因上调，并鉴定出关键基因和转录本CAND1、ACTN4、FGFR2和NCOR2。对于BFT，发现了与肌动蛋白细胞骨架组织和微管形成相关的神经元基因、转录本和蛋白质。还鉴定了与泛素化、能量代谢调节和组织重塑相关的关键基因。这些发现有助于更好地理解内洛尔牛胴体和肉质性状所涉及的基因、转录本、蛋白质和代谢途径。
