Jd Wood

Factors influencing fatty acids in meat and the role of antioxidants in improving meat quality

Meat has been identified, often wrongly, as a food having a high fat content and an undesirable balance of fatty acids. In fact lean meat is very low in fat (20-50 g/kg), pork and poultry have a favourable balance between polyunsaturated and saturated fatty acids (P:S) and grazing ruminants produce muscle with a desirable n-6:n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid ratio. In all species, meat fatty acid composition can be changed via the diet, more easily in single-stomached pigs and poultry where the linoleic, alpha-linolenic and long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid content responds quickly to raised dietary concentrations. Recent work in pigs has attempted to manipulate the n-6:n-3 ratio by feeding higher levels of alpha-linolenic acid (e.g. in rapeseed) or its products eicosapentaenoic acid (20:5) and docosahexaenoic acid (22:6) present in fish oils. In ruminants the challenge is to increase the P:S ratio whilst retaining values for n-6:n-3 found in cattle and sheep fed on forage diets. The saturating effect of the rumen can be overcome by feeding polyunsaturated fatty acids which are protected either chemically, by processing, or naturally e.g. within the seed coat. Some protection occurs when grain-based or grass-based diets are fed normally, leading to relatively more n-6 or n-3 fatty acids respectively. These produce different flavours in cooked meat due to the different oxidative changes occurring during storage and cooking. In pigs and poultry, high n-3 fatty acid concentrations in meat are associated with fishy flavours whose development can be prevented with high dietary (supranutritional) levels of the antioxidant vitamin E. In ruminants, supranutritional vitamin E delays the oxidative change of oxymyoglobin to brown metmyoglobin and may also influence the characteristic flavours of beef and lamb.

Manipulating the fatty acid composition of muscle and adipose tissue in beef cattle

Enhancing the n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) content of beef is important in view of the generally saturated nature of fatty acids in ruminant meats and the negative effect this can have on human health. This study examined the effects of different sources of dietary n-3 PUFA on the performance of steers and the fatty acid composition of m. longissimus thoracis muscle and associated subcutaneous adipose tissue. Animals were fed ad libitum on grass silage plus one of four concentrates (60:40 forage:concentrate on a DM basis) containing differing sources of lipid: Megalac (16:0), lightly bruised whole linseed (18:3n-3), fish oil (20:5n-3 and 22:6n-3) and a mixture of linseed and fish oil (1:1, on an oil basis). Diets were formulated so that total dietary oil intake was 6 %, approximately half of which was from the experimental test oil. Linseed feeding not only increased the levels of 18:3n-3 in muscle phospholipid from 9.5 to 19 mg/100 g muscle but also enhanced the synthesis of 20:5n-3, the level of which increased from 10 to 15 mg/100 g muscle. Linseed also increased the proportion of 18:3n-3 in muscle neutral lipid and in adipose tissue lipids by a factor of 1.64 and 1.75 respectively. Fish oil feeding doubled the proportion of 20:5n-3 and 22:6n-3 in muscle phospholipids. The proportion of 18:1 trans in muscle neutral lipid was higher on the n-3 PUFA diets than the control diet, 0.04 and 0.02 respectively. Despite the implied modification to rumen metabolism, lipid source did not affect feed intake, growth rate, cold carcass weight or carcass fatness, but carcass conformation score was higher on fish oil treatments (P < 0.05). However, total muscle fatty acid content was not different between treatments and ranged from 3.5-4.3 % of tissue weight. The increase in n-3 PUFA in the meat produced by feeding linseed or fish oil lowered the n-6:n-3 ratio but had little effect on the P:S ratio.

Biohydrogenation and digestion of long chain fatty acids in steers fed on different sources of lipid

Scollan, N. D., Dhanoa, M. S., Choi, N.-J., Maeng, W. J., Enser, M., Wood, J. D. (2001). Biohydrogenation and digestion of long chain fatty acids in steers fed on different sources of lipid. Journal of Agricultural Science, 136, (3), 345-355

Dietary manipulation of fatty acid composition in lamb meat and its effect on the volatile aroma compounds of grilled lamb

The effect on lamb muscle of five dietary supplements high in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) was measured. The supplements were linseed oil, fish oil, protected lipid (high in linoleic acid (C18:2 n-6) and α-linolenic acid (C18:3 n-3)), fish oil/marine algae (1:1), and protected lipid/marine algae (1:1). Eicosapentaenoic acid (C20:5 n-3) and docosahexaenoic acid (C22:6 n-3) were found in the highest amounts in the meat from lambs fed diets containing algae. Meat from lambs fed protected lipid had the highest levels of C18:2 n-6 and C18:3 n-3, due to the effectiveness of the protection system. In grilled meat from these animals, volatile compounds derived from n-3 fatty acids were highest in the meat from the lambs fed the fish oil/algae diet, whereas compounds derived from n-6 fatty acids were highest in the meat from the lambs fed the protected lipid diet.

Backfat composition in pigs: Differences between fat thickness groups and sexes

Abstract The chemical composition of subcutaneous fat (backfat) from the last rib and shoulder regions was studied in 300 pig carcasses, mean weight 58 kg, falling into 3 fat-thickness groups averaging 8, 12 and 16 mm P2 (65 mm from mid dorsal line at last rib). The carcasses were obtained in 10 abattoirs, in each of which 5 producer groups of 6 pigs were identified: 1 entire male and 1 female for each of the fat-thickness groups. Concentrations of the gross constituents water, lipid and collagen were greatly affected by the thickness of backfat, water and collagen declining and lipid increasing through the fat thickness range. Fatty acids were less affected, although linoleic acid (C18:2) decreased from 14.9% of fatty acids at 8 mm P2 to 10.6% at 16 mm. The concentration of C18:2 measured at the last rib and shoulder positions was highly correlated with subjective and objective measures of tissue firmness at both sites. In each fat thickness group, backfat from entire males contained higher concentrations of water, collagen and C18:2 than that from females. Relationships between concentrations and P2 were curvilinear, changing most at low P2 levels, and were best explained by linear regressions of log components on log P2. Regression lines were parallel in the two sexes and were such that concentrations in entire males were similar to those in females with a 15% lower P2 value. Average values for polyunsaturated fatty acids were higher than standard figures normally quoted, the ratio of polyunsaturated to saturated fatty acids in the leanest group (0.41) being close to the recommended value for the U.K. diet as a whole.

Effects of including a ruminally protected lipid supplement in the diet on the fatty acid composition of beef muscle

Enhancing the polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) and decreasing the saturated fatty acid content of beef is an important target in terms of improving the nutritional value of this food for the consumer. The present study examined the effects of feeding a ruminally protected lipid supplement (PLS) rich in PUFA on the fatty acid composition of longissimus thoracis muscle and associated subcutaneous adipose tissue. Animals were fed ad libitum on grass silage plus one of three concentrate treatments in which the lipid source was either Megalac (rich in palmitic acid; 16 : 0) or PLS (soybean, linseed and sunflower-seed oils resulting in an 18 : 2n-6:18 : 3n-3 value of 2.4:1). Treatment 1 contained 100 g Megalac/kg (Mega, control); treatment 2 (PLS1) contained 54 g Megalac/kg with 500 g PLS/d fed separately; treatment 3 (PLS2) contained no Megalac and 1000 g PLS/d fed separately. The PLS was considered as part of the overall concentrate allocation per d in maintaining an overall forage:concentrate value of 60:40 on a DM basis. Total dietary fat was formulated to be 0.07 of DM of which 0.04 was the test oil. Total intramuscular fatty acids (mg/100 g muscle) were decreased by 0.31 when feeding PLS2 compared with Mega (P<0.05). In neutral lipid, the PLS increased the proportion of 18 : 2n-6 and 18 : 3n-3 by 2.7 and 4.1 on diets PLS1 and PLS2 v. Mega, respectively. Similar responses were noted for these fatty acids in phospholipid. The amounts or proportions of 20 : 4n-6, 20 : 5n-3 or 22 : 6n-3 were not influenced by diet whereas the amounts and proportions of 22 : 4n-6 and 22 : 5n-3 in phospholipid were decreased with inclusion of the PLS. The amounts of the saturated fatty acids, 14 : 0, 16 : 0 and 18 : 0, in neutral lipid were on average 0.37 lower on treatment PLS2 compared with Mega. Feeding the PLS also decreased the proportion of 16 : 0 in neutral lipid. The amount of 18 : 1n-9 (P=0.1) and the amount and proportion of 18 : 1 trans (P<0.01) were lower on treatments PLS1 and PLS2 in neutral lipid and phospholipid. Conjugated linoleic acid (cis-9, trans-11) was not influenced by diet in the major storage fraction for this fatty acid, neutral lipid. The PUFA:saturated fatty acids value was increased markedly (x2.5) with inclusion of the PLS (P<0.001) while the Sigman-6 : n-3 value increased slightly (x1.2; P=0.015). The results suggest that the protected lipid used, which was rich in PUFA, had a high degree of protection from the hydrogenating action of rumen micro-organisms. The PLS resulted in meat with a lower content of total fat, decreased saturated fatty acids and much higher 18 : 2n-6 and 18 : 3n-3. The net result was a large shift in polyunsaturated: saturated fatty acids, 0.28 v. 0.08, on feeding PLS2 compared with Mega, respectively.

Δ9 desaturase protein expression and fatty acid composition of longissimus dorsi muscle in lambs fed green herbage or concentrate with or without added tannins

The aims of this study were to investigate the effect of feeding system and of supplementation of tannins (8.93% DM) on the relationship between intramuscular fat content, fatty acid composition and Δ(9)desaturase (Δ(9)d) protein expression in longissimus dorsi muscle of lamb. Twenty-eight Comisana lambs (age 45days) were fed either vetch (Vicia sativa) or concentrate. The herbage diet was (i) lower in saturated fatty acids (especially in C16:0), C18:1 n-9 and in C18:2 n-6; (ii) higher in C16:1 and C18:3 n-3 when compared to concentrate. Within each feeding system the lambs were divided into two sub-groups, one of which received the diet without tannins supplementation, and the other was fed the diets supplemented with the tannins from Quebracho (Schinopsis lorentzii). The animals were slaughtered at age 105days. The concentrate feeding system increased (p<0.01) the total intramuscular fat content and the amount of SFA, MUFA and n-6 PUFA and decreased the level of n-3 PUFA (p=0.05) when compared to the vetch-fed animals but did not affect Δ(9) desaturase protein expression. There was no correlation between Δ(9)d protein expression and total intramuscular fatty acids, CLA and MUFA level. It was suggested that in ruminants, in contrast to monogastric animals, Δ(9)d expression does not play the key role in intramuscular fatty acids formation. Tannins supplementation resulted in higher (p<0.05) muscle levels of transC18:1 and C18:2 n-6. It has also increased Δ(9)d expression in the case of herbage-based diet but not in the case of concentrate-based diet. The mechanism of tannins action on the enzyme expression needs to be elucidated.

Fat mobilization in Pietrain and Large White pigs.

I. Two experiments were done with Pietrain and Large White pigs (about 50 kg body-weight) to determine whether fat mobilization is enhanced in the stress-sensitive Pietrains (which also produce pale, soft, exudative (PSE) meat). 2. In Expt I, plasma glucose and insulin concentrations and free fatty acid (FFA) concentrations and composition were measured in five Pietrains and five Large Whites after feeding, during an infusion of norepinephrine (2.5 microng/kg body-weight per min), 16 and 21 h after the withdrawal of food and following insulin administration (0.3 IU/kg body-weight). The entry rate of oleic acid was measured 4 h after feeding. Body composition and longissimus dorsi pH measurements were made on killing the pigs 4 d after the experiment. 3. After feeding, the Pietrans tended to have lower concentrations of glucose and insulin in plasma compared with the Large Whites, and higher concentrations of FFA. The Pietrans also had a faster entry rate of oleic acid into body tissues. In fasting (16 h) these differences in hormone and metabolite concentrations were also present and relationships between them and body development could be detected. Pietrains had higher concentrations of FFA and lower concentrations of insulin than Large Whites at a particular stage of the development of fat and muscle (subcutaneous fat weight divided by longissimus muscle weight). 4. The fatty acid composition of FFA resembled that of the backfat triglycerides in fasting and during norepinephrine infusion but not in the fed state. In particular the proportion of fatty acid 18:I was low in the fed pigs and that of 18:2 was high. The contrast in FFA composition between the fed and stimulated state was greater in the Large Whites. 5. The Pietrains were less sensitive to the antilipolytic action of insulin. Glucose and FFA concentrations were similar in both breeds during the norepinephrine infusion although insulin concentrations were increased to a larger extent in Large Whites at the termination of the infusion. 6. In Expt 2, anaesthetized Pietrain and Large White pigs were given constant infusions of norepinephrine alone (2.5 microng/kg body-weight per min) and norepinephrine + propranolol (2, 10 and 20 microng/kg body-weight per min) or phentolamine (2 and 10 microng/kg body-weight per min). The aim was to determine whether the breeds differed in their sensitivity to norepinephrine when conscious responses to the hormone were prevented. 7. When norepinephrine alone was infused, fat mobilization was greater in the Pietrain pigs and glucose concentrations were greater in the Large Whites. Propranolol markedly reduced the lipolytic action of norepinephrine, particularly in the Pietrain pigs studied, and phentolamine reduced its glycogenolytic action, particularly in the Large White pig. 8...

The chemical composition of fat tissues in the pig: Effects of castration and feeding treatment

Abstract Entire males and barrows were fed, between 20 and 90 kg live weight, either a diet containing 12.9 MJDE kg−1 at a high level of intake (treatment A, 10 pigs of each sex) or a diet containing 10.8 MJDE kg−1 at a low level of intake (treatment B, 10 pigs of each sex). The diets contained 2% (diet A) or 5% (diet B) of DE as linoleic acid (C18:2). The aim was to compare the effects of castration and an extreme dietary treatment on the chemical composition of fat tissues from several sites in the carcass. The sites differed markedly in composition with perirenal fat being low in % water and high in % lipid, and belly (ventral subcutaneous) and prescapular (intermuscular) fat being high in % water and low in % lipid. Perirenal fat had higher concentrations of saturated fatty acids than the other sites but also contained more of the major dietary fatty acid, C18:2. Castration and feeding treatment greatly affected the water and lipid concentrations of all sites, entire males and pigs on treatment B having higher concentrations of water and lower concentrations of lipid than barrows or pigs on treatment A. In contrast, fatty acid composition was influenced more by feeding treatment than castration, values of approximately 30% C18:2 being recorded in all sites in treatment B compared with 12% in treatment A. Such effects have repercussions for the firmness and cohesiveness of fat tissues.

Regulation of CYP2A6 protein expression by skatole, indole and testicular steroids in primary cultured pig hepatocytes

CYP2A6 is one of the enzymes involved in the hepatic metabolism of a naturally produced compound, skatole, in the pig. Low CYP2A6 activity has been linked to excessive accumulation of skatole in pig adipose tissue and development of the phenomenon “boar taint.” CYP2A6 activity varies between male and female animals, suggesting the involvement of sex hormones in regulation of the enzyme activity and/or expression. The present study investigated whether pig hepatic CYP2A6 protein expression is regulated by the testicular steroids testosterone, androstenone, or estrone sulfate using primary cultured hepatocytes as a model system. The study has also examined whether CYP2A6 expression can be modulated by the boar taint compounds skatole and indole. The research has established that androstenone inhibits CYP2A6 protein expression at the concentration of 1, 10, and 100 nM by 55, 37, and 44%, respectively. In contrast to androstenone, skatole and indole (final concentrations, 1, 10, and 100 nM) had a stimulatory effect on CYP2A6 expression. The effect of indole was more pronounced than that of skatole (maximum induction by 145 and 70%, respectively). Estrone sulfate and testosterone did not have a significant effect on CYP2A6 protein level. This is, as far as we know, the first communication to report the regulation of pig hepatic CYP2A6 expression by steroids and boar taint compounds. The hormonal modulation of CYP2A6 expression might contribute to gender-related differences in pig hepatic CYP2A6 activity and skatole accumulation in pig adipose tissue.