Assessment of water relaxometry of meat under different ageing processes using time domain nuclear magnetic resonance relaxometry.

This study assessed water relaxometry of beef exposed to different ageing techniques by examining the inner and surface regions using time-domain nuclear magnetic resonance (TD-NMR) relaxometry. Beef strip loins were aged under vacuum (Wet), under vacuum using moisture absorbers (Abs), under vacuum using moisture absorbers and with mechanical tenderisation (AbsTend), or without any packaging (Dry). The ageing technique significantly influenced various meat parameters, including dehydration, total loss, and the moisture content of the meat surface. The transverse (T2) relaxation times provided a more sensitive indicator of the changes in meat water relaxometry than the longitudinal (T1) relaxation times. The Dry samples exhibited distinct differences in the T2 signals between the surface and inner regions of the meat. In particular, for the inner region, there were significant differences in signal areas between the Wet and Dry samples, and the Abs and AbsTend samples were positioned closely together between the Dry and Wet samples. The principal component analysis supported these findings: it indicated some differentiation among the ageing techniques in the score plot, but the differentiation was more pronounced when analysing the surface region. Additionally, there was a strong correlation between dehydration and the T2 values, leading to a clustering of the samples based on the ageing technique. The overlap between the Abs and AbsTend samples, situated between the Dry and Wet samples, suggests the potential of these treatments to produce meat with properties that are intermediate to Wet and Dry meat. Furthermore, tenderisation did not lead to greater dehydration.

Metabolome fingerprints, performance and carcass quality of beef calves supplemented with antibiotic free additive.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of probiotics on pre-weaning performance, muscle, and fat deposition and serum metabolite profiles in male and female Senepol calves. Thirty new-born Senepol calves, 15 males and 15 females, were randomly allocated to the following treatments: CON a control group that received the basal creep feeding diet and PRO animals that received the basal diet with addition of 2 g/100 kg of body weight (BW) of probiotic. PRO supplementation did not change the DMI but increased average BW, final BW, ADG relative to animals fed CON. Additionally, PRO improved LMA and marbling. Regardless of the serum metabolite profile, the important metabolites for discriminating PRO and CON were glutamine, leucine, creatine, acetate, creatinine, arginine, glutamate, hippurate, glycerol, carnitine, lactate, carnosine, myo-inositol and histidine. According to gender, males had an overabundance of glutamine, glycerol, isoleucine, creatinine and glucose, whereas females had an overabundance of acetyl carnitine, glutamate and carnitine. In conclusion, the addition of PRO in the pre-weaning diet of calves increases performance, weight at weaning and muscle and fat deposition on the carcass, improving proteins and fatty acid metabolism, the immune system response and rumen development.

Metabolomic signature of genetic potential for muscularity in beef cattle.

The aim of this study was to investigate the serum and meat metabolomic changes according to the genetic potential for muscularity of non-castrated Nellore males and its association with phenotypic traits. Forty-eight non-castrated Nellore males were separated into two groups based on their genetic potential for post-weaning muscularity: high (HM) and low (LM). Selection for muscularity did not cause noticeable differences in the traits evaluated during the finishing phase and after slaughter. However, several metabolites in meat and serum, have changed according to the muscularity group. HM animals presented an over-abundance of glycerol, glutamine, choline, methylhistidine, betaine, creatinine and methionine in serum, compared with their LM counterparts. Similarly, the meat samples of HM animals were rich in glucose-6-phosphate, lactate, pyruvate, creatinine, betaine, choline, glycerol and arginine relative to LM bulls. Inosine monophosphate was the only metabolite over-abundant in LM animals. In conclusion, the genetic potential for post-weaning muscularity did not affect performance during the finishing phase, carcass traits and meat quality. However, multivariate analysis shows that the genetic potential of muscularity can be correlated with serum lipid and protein metabolites, and with energy metabolism in meat, providing a footprint of cattle muscularity metabolism.

Using TD-NMR relaxometry and 1D 1H NMR spectroscopy to evaluate aging of Nellore beef.

The aim of this study was to explore the use of TD-NMR relaxometry and 1H NMR spectroscopy-based for detecting differences in meat quality attributes. There was limited association between various TD-NMR signals and any physicochemical parameters of fresh and aged meat differing in tenderness ratings. Samples were then divided into three groups based on statistical changes in metabolite concentration. Group A samples possessed near linear increases in metabolite concentration over aging time; whereas samples assigned to Groups B and C were characterized by increases in metabolites that peaked between 7 and 14 days, and up to 14 days aging, respectively. 1H NMR spectroscopy discriminated meat quality using changes in metabolites reflective of glycolysis, the citric acid cycle, protein degradation, amino acid generation and purine metabolisms. These data suggest segregation of meat quality is possible using both NMR technologies but additional work is necessary to understand fully their utility in a commercial industry setting.

Characterization of chicken muscle disorders through metabolomics, pathway analysis, and water relaxometry: a pilot study.

Metabolite profiles of chicken breast extracts and water mobility in breasts were studied using proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H-NMR) spectroscopy and time-domain NMR (TD-NMR) relaxometry, respectively, using normal breast (NB), and wooden breast (WB) and white striping (WS) myopathies in broilers. One thousand eight hundred sixty broilers were raised to commercial standards, receiving the same diets that were formulated as per the different growth stages. At 49 D of age, 200 animals were slaughtered following routine commercial procedures, and at 4 h postmortem, the whole breast (pectoralis major muscle) was removed and visually inspected by an experienced meat inspector who selected NB (without myopathies) and samples with the presence of WS and WB myopathies. Fifteen breasts (5 each of NB, WS, and WB) were analyzed through TD-NMR relaxometry, and samples of approximately 20 g were taken from each breast and frozen at -80°C for metabolite profiling through 1H-NMR spectroscopy. Multivariate statistical analysis was used to evaluate the effect on water relaxometry and metabolite profile in accordance with the presence and type of myopathy in the breast. 1H-NMR data showed that the metabolite profiles in WS and WB breasts were different from each other and from NB. This pilot study shows that myopathies appear to be related to hypoxia, connective tissue deposition, lower mitochondrial function, and greater oxidative stress compared with NB. The longitudinal and transverse relaxation time of the breasts determined by TD-NMR relaxometry was shorter for NB than that for WS and WB, indicating greater water mobility in breasts affected by myopathies. 1H-NMR spectroscopy can be used to differentiate the metabolism of WS, WB, and NB, and TD-NMR has the potential to be a fast, simple, and noninvasive method to distinguish NB from WB and WS. As a practical application, the metabolomic profile as per the occurrence of breast myopathies may be used for a better understanding of these issues, which opens a gap to mitigate the incidence and severity of WS and WB. In addition, the present study brings an opportunity for the development of a new and objective tool to classify the incidence of breast myopathies through TD-NMR relaxometry.

Investigation of metabolites associated with confinement odour in chilled vacuum-packed lamb by proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) spectroscopy.

This study aimed to determine the profiles of water-soluble metabolites in lamb drip and meat by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, in order to better understand the confinement odour (CO) phenomenon in lamb meat on a molecular level. Thirty-five lamb legs were obtained from two New Zealand meat processing plants and stored for 11 to 13 weeks at temperatures ranging from -1.5 °C to +4.0 °C. A sensorial test classified meat samples as having CO, no odour (NO) or persistent odour (PO). Sixty-three and sixty-two metabolites were identified and quantified in drip and meat samples, respectively. Partial least squares canonical analysis (PLS-CA) showed that CO was correlated with meat and drip metabolites tyramine, formate, alanine, carnosine, urea, proline, aspartate, glutathione and nicotinate. CO was also positively associated with appearance and bloom, but not directly associated with pH, size of the bacterial population or with processing plant. Metabolites associated with CO/PO are substrates or products of glucose fermentation and amino acid catabolism.

Metabolite profile and consumer sensory acceptability of meat from lean Nellore and Angus × Nellore crossbreed cattle fed soybean oil.

Thirty each Nellore (NEL) and crossbred Angus × Nellore (AxN) were used to evaluate the effect of feeding soybean oil (SBO) and breed on meat sensory acceptability and its relation to muscle metabolite profiles. Cattle were fed for 133 d on two different diets: 1) basal feedlot diet (CON) and 2) CON diet with 3.5% added SBO. No interactions between diet and genetic group were detected for any traits measured. Meat from animals fed SBO diet had lower overall liking, flavor, tenderness and juiciness scores compared to meat from animals fed CON diet. The four most important compounds differing between animals fed CON and SBO diets were betaine, glycerol, fumarate, and carnosine, suggesting that metabolic pathways such as glycerolipid metabolism; glycine, serine and threonine metabolism; glutamine and glutamate metabolism; valine, leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis; and alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism were affected by diets. Nellore beef had a higher overall liking and meat flavor scores than AxN beef. The four most important compounds differing between breeds were glycine, glucose, alanine, and carnosine, which may indicate that metabolic pathways such as glutathione metabolism; primary bile acid biosynthesis; alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism; and valine, leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis were affected by genetic groups. Meat carnosine, inosine monophosphate, glutamate, betaine, glycerol and creatinine levels were correlated with sensory acceptability scores. Meat metabolite profiles and sensory acceptability were differentially impacted by diet and breed.

Associations of Blood Analysis with Feed Efficiency and Developmental Stage in Grass-Fed Beef Heifers.

Proxies for feed efficiency, such as blood-based indicators, applicable across heifers varying in genetic makeup and developmental state are needed. Assessments of blood analytes and performance were made in heifer calves and pregnant heifers. Residual feed intake, a measure of feed efficiency, was used to categorize each population of heifers as either efficient or inefficient. Efficient heifer calves had lower mean cell hemoglobin, greater lymphocyte count, and fewer segmented neutrophils at the end of the test compared to inefficient calves. Efficient pregnant heifers had greater counts of lymphocytes with fewer segmented neutrophils at the end than inefficient pregnant heifers. Efficient heifer calves exhibited higher specific immunoglobulin M than inefficient calves. Throughout the test, efficient heifer calves had elevated potassium and phosphorus, and reduced alkaline phosphatase (ALP) compared to inefficient heifers. Efficient pregnant heifers showed greater ALP, non-esterified fatty acids and creatinine, but lower cholesterol and globulin than inefficient pregnant heifers. Levels of red and white blood cells, creatine kinase, cholesterol, glucose, potassium and phosphorus were higher in heifer calves compared with pregnant heifers. There is potential for blood analytes as proxies for feed efficiency; however, it is necessary to consider the inherent associations with feed efficiency and heifers' developmental stage.