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Updated: Jun 28, 2025

Author Spotlight: Improving Beef Cattle Nutrition and Production with a Focus on Feed Efficiency and Meat Quality Traits Through Advanced Biochemical and Molecular Assays
07:46

Author Spotlight: Improving Beef Cattle Nutrition and Production with a Focus on Feed Efficiency and Meat Quality Traits Through Advanced Biochemical and Molecular Assays

Published on: July 12, 2024

517

Effect of mitochondrial calcium homeostasis-mediated endogenous enzyme activation on tenderness of beef muscle based

Zhenjiang Ding1, Chunmei Liu2, Zihan Zhang2

  • 1Beijing Key Laboratory of the Innovative Development of Functional Staple and Nutritional Intervention for Chronic Diseases, China National Research Institute of Food and Fermentation Industries, Beijing 100015, China.

Food Chemistry: X
|April 16, 2024
PubMed

Insights

Mitochondrial calcium uniporter (MCU) modulators impact meat tenderness. Activating MCU increases mitochondrial calcium, causing dysfunction and altering enzyme activity, while inhibiting MCU shows opposite effects on meat aging.

Area of Science:

  • Biochemistry
  • Cellular Biology
  • Food Science

Background:

  • Mitochondrial calcium uptake is regulated by the mitochondrial calcium uniporter (MCU).
  • Understanding MCU's role in postmortem aging is crucial for meat quality.
  • Mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress impact meat tenderness.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the effects of MCU modulators on mitochondrial calcium levels.
  • To determine the impact of MCU-mediated calcium changes on mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress, and endogenous enzyme activities.
  • To elucidate the relationship between MCU activity and meat tenderness during postmortem aging.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized spermine as an MCU activator and Ru360 as an MCU inhibitor.
  • Assessed mitochondrial morphology, calcium levels, and oxidative stress markers.
  • Measured endogenous enzyme activities (calpain, caspases) and myofibril fragmentation index.
  • Evaluated meat tenderness postmortem.

Main Results:

  • Spermine (MCU activator) increased mitochondrial calcium, disrupted morphology, induced oxidative stress, and altered antioxidant factors.
  • Spermine group showed delayed calpain activation and earlier caspase activation.
  • Ru360 (MCU inhibitor) produced opposite effects to spermine.
  • Myofibril fragmentation index exhibited a biphasic pattern in the spermine group.

Conclusions:

  • MCU plays a significant role in regulating mitochondrial calcium homeostasis.
  • MCU-mediated mitochondrial calcium influences mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress.
  • Endogenous enzyme activities and subsequent meat tenderness are modulated by MCU activity during postmortem aging.
Keywords:
Endogenous enzymeMitochondrial calcium homeostasisMitochondrial dysfunctionOxidative stressTenderness

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