Jiahui Cong1, Lin Zhang1, Jiaolong Li1, Shuhao Wang1, Feng Gao1, Guanghong Zhou1. 1. College of Animal Science and Technology, Key Laboratory of Animal Origin Food Production and Safety Guarantee of Jiangsu Province, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Meat Production and Processing, Quality and Safety Control, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The effects of dietary carnosine were evaluated on the growth performance, meat quality, antioxidant capacity and muscle fiber characteristics in thigh muscle of 256 one-day-old male broilers assigned to four diets - basal diets supplemented with 0, 100, 200 or 400 mg kg-1 carnosine respectively - during a 42 day experiment. RESULTS: Carnosine concentration and carnosine synthase expression in thigh muscle were linearly increased (P < 0.05) and the feed/gain ratio was decreased (P < 0.05) in the starter period by carnosine addition. Dietary supplementation with carnosine resulted in linear increases in pH45min , redness and cohesiveness and decreases in drip loss, cooking loss, shear force and hardness (P < 0.05). Carnosine addition elevated the activities of antioxidant enzymes and reduced contents of malondialdehyde and carbonyl compounds (P < 0.05). Dietary carnosine linearly decreased diameters and increased densities of muscle fibers (P < 0.01). The ratios of myosin heavy chain (MyHC) I and IIa were increased while that of MyHC IIb was decreased (P < 0.01). The mRNA expressions of genes related to fiber type transformation were linearly up-regulated (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: These findings indicated that carnosine supplementation was beneficial to improve the growth performance, meat quality, antioxidant capacity and muscle fiber characteristics of broilers.
BACKGROUND: The effects of dietary carnosine were evaluated on the growth performance, meat quality, antioxidant capacity and muscle fiber characteristics in thigh muscle of 256 one-day-old male broilers assigned to four diets - basal diets supplemented with 0, 100, 200 or 400 mg kg-1 carnosine respectively - during a 42 day experiment. RESULTS: Carnosine concentration and carnosine synthase expression in thigh muscle were linearly increased (P < 0.05) and the feed/gain ratio was decreased (P < 0.05) in the starter period by carnosine addition. Dietary supplementation with carnosine resulted in linear increases in pH45min , redness and cohesiveness and decreases in drip loss, cooking loss, shear force and hardness (P < 0.05). Carnosine addition elevated the activities of antioxidant enzymes and reduced contents of malondialdehyde and carbonyl compounds (P < 0.05). Dietary carnosine linearly decreased diameters and increased densities of muscle fibers (P < 0.01). The ratios of myosin heavy chain (MyHC) I and IIa were increased while that of MyHC IIb was decreased (P < 0.01). The mRNA expressions of genes related to fiber type transformation were linearly up-regulated (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: These findings indicated that carnosine supplementation was beneficial to improve the growth performance, meat quality, antioxidant capacity and muscle fiber characteristics of broilers.
Authors: Ivana Jukić; Nikolina Kolobarić; Ana Stupin; Anita Matić; Nataša Kozina; Zrinka Mihaljević; Martina Mihalj; Petar Šušnjara; Marko Stupin; Željka Breškić Ćurić; Kristina Selthofer-Relatić; Aleksandar Kibel; Anamarija Lukinac; Luka Kolar; Gordana Kralik; Zlata Kralik; Aleksandar Széchenyi; Marija Jozanović; Olivera Galović; Martina Medvidović-Kosanović; Ines Drenjančević Journal: Antioxidants (Basel) Date: 2021-06-28