Indigenous broilers in crossbreeding: impacts on meat quality and candidate gene screening.

Area of Science:

• Animal Science
• Genetics
• Food Science

Background:

• Significant meat quality variations exist between yellow and white-feathered chickens.
• The genetic mechanisms underlying these meat quality differences are not fully understood.
• High-quality chicken products are crucial for market competitiveness.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the genetic basis of meat quality differences in chickens.
• To identify molecular markers for enhancing chicken meat quality traits.
• To explore the influence of bloodline on chicken meat characteristics.

Main Methods:

• Utilized metabolomic, lipidomic, and RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) analyses.
• Identified differentially expressed metabolites, lipids, and genes.
• Genotyped single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) sites within the purinergic receptor P2 × 5 (P2RX5) gene.

Main Results:

• Chicken bloodline significantly impacts meat quality, particularly breast muscle shear force and color.
• Identified the P2RX5 gene as a key contributor to meat quality traits.
• Three specific SNP sites in P2RX5 were significantly associated with traits like a* value and cooking loss.

Conclusions:

• The identified P2RX5 gene SNPs serve as potential molecular markers for improving chicken meat quality.
• Findings provide a foundation for marker-assisted breeding programs targeting meat quality.
• Further research with larger sample sizes and male chickens is needed to confirm generalizability.