Leveraging Functional Genomics for Understanding Beef Quality Complexities and Breeding Beef Cattle for Improved Meat Quality

Genes (Basel). 2024 Aug 22;15(8):1104. doi: 10.3390/genes15081104.

Abstract

Consumer perception of beef is heavily influenced by overall meat quality, a critical factor in the cattle industry. Genomics has the potential to improve important beef quality traits and identify genetic markers and causal variants associated with these traits through genomic selection (GS) and genome-wide association studies (GWAS) approaches. Transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics provide insights into underlying genetic mechanisms by identifying differentially expressed genes, proteins, and metabolic pathways linked to quality traits, complementing GWAS data. Leveraging these functional genomics techniques can optimize beef cattle breeding for enhanced quality traits to meet high-quality beef demand. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the current state of applications of omics technologies in uncovering functional variants underlying beef quality complexities. By highlighting the latest findings from GWAS, GS, transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics studies, this work seeks to serve as a valuable resource for fostering a deeper understanding of the complex relationships between genetics, gene expression, protein dynamics, and metabolic pathways in shaping beef quality.

Keywords: GWAS; beef cattle; functional genomics; genomic selection; meat quality; molecular breeding; omics technologies.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Breeding* / methods
  • Cattle / genetics
  • Genome-Wide Association Study* / methods
  • Genomics* / methods
  • Meat / standards
  • Metabolomics / methods
  • Proteomics / methods
  • Quantitative Trait Loci
  • Red Meat* / standards

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation (grant number 32060731), Scientific and Technological Innovation 2030—Major Project (2023ZD0404803-01), Inner Mongolia Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Innovation Fund (grant number 2023CXJJM01), 2023 Inner Mongolia Grassland Talent Program, Inner Mongolia Key Research and Development and Achievement Transformation Plan projects (grant number 2023YFDZ0035).