Riccardo Bozzi

Performance of Cinta Senese pigs reared outdoors and indoors. 1. Meat and subcutaneous fat characteristics

The effects of rearing system on tissue composition of a sample joint and on chemical-physical traits of meat and subcutaneous fat were studied in an Italian local pig breed. Forty-six Cinta Senese pigs were used; 17 pigs were reared on wood pasture, 29 pigs were reared in pens and fed commercial mixtures. Weight at slaughter was 136.2 and 127.7 kg for indoor and outdoor-pigs respectively. For sample joint composition outdoor-pigs showed a lower percentage of Longissimus lumborum (Ll) (46% vs. 48%) and higher percentages of intermuscular fat (7.2% vs. 4.7%) and bone (20.9% vs. 19.2%). In Ll outdoor-pigs showed higher percentages of intramuscular fat (4.04% vs. 3.29%) and crude protein (23.5% vs. 22.8%), lower drip and cooking losses by oven (0.66% vs. 2.14% and 28.6% vs. 32.3% respectively) and higher cooking loss by water-bath (30.3% vs. 26.6%). Lower values of L* (45.8 vs. 50.1) and higher values of a* (14.9 vs. 11.8) and chroma (15.9 vs. 12.8) were recorded on Ll of outdoor-pigs. Subcutaneous fat of outdoor-pigs showed higher percentages of MUFA (55.1% vs. 53.3%) and PUFA (13.2% vs. 10.4%). Outdoor-pigs had higher PUFA/SFA ratio (0.43 vs. 0.29).

Y-specific microsatellites reveal an African subfamily in taurine (Bos taurus) cattle.

Five cattle Y-specific microsatellites, totalling six loci, were selected from a set of 44 markers and genotyped on 608 Bos taurus males belonging to 45 cattle populations from Europe and Africa. A total of 38 haplotypes were identified. Haplogroups (Y1 and Y2) previously defined using single nucleotide polymorphisms did not share haplotypes. Nine of the 27 Y2-haplotypes were only present in African cattle. Network and correspondence analyses showed that this African-specific subfamily clustered separately from the main Y2-subfamily and the Y1 haplotypes. Within-breed genetic variability was generally low, with most breeds (78%) showing haplotypes belonging to a single haplogroup. AMOVA analysis showed that partitioning of genetic variation among breeds can be mainly explained by their geographical and haplogroup assignment. Between-breed genetic variability summarized via Principal Component Analysis allowed the identification of three principal components explaining 94.2% of the available information. Projection of principal components on geographical maps illustrated that cattle populations located in mainland Europe, the three European Peninsulas and Mediterranean Africa presented similar genetic variation, whereas those breeds from Atlantic Europe and British Islands (mainly carrying Y1 haplotypes) and those from Sub-Saharan Africa (belonging to Y2-haplogroup) showed genetic variation of a different origin. Our study confirmed the existence of two large Y-chromosome lineages (Y1 and Y2) in taurine cattle. However, Y-specific microsatellites increased analytical resolution and allowed at least two different Y2-haplotypic subfamilies to be distinguished, one of them restricted to the African continent.

Performance of Cinta Senese pigs and their crosses with Large White. 1 Muscle and subcutaneous fat characteristics

Twenty-nine Cinta Senese (CS), 29 Large WhitexCinta Senese (LWxCS) and 12 Large White (LW) pigs were reared indoors and fed a commercial mixture. After slaughter (at avg. weight of 136, 139, 155 kg for CS, LWxCS, LW, respectively), a portion of the loin (sample cut) was dissected into lean and Longissimus lumborum (LL), intermuscular fat and bone. Chemical and physical analyses were conducted on LL. Chemical composition and fatty acid profile were determined on the outer layer of backfat. CS pigs had the highest percentage of bone and the lowest of lean in the sample cut, LWxCS showing intermediate values between parental breeds. In LL, CS showed lower moisture (73.23% vs. 74.28%) and higher fat content (3.19% vs. 0.87%) than LW; pH(24) was higher in CS (5.78) than in LWxCS (5.67) and LW (5.50); meat was more red in CS and LWxCS than in LW; CS showed higher water holding capacity than LW, with LWxCS at an intermediate position; raw meat was tougher in CS than in LW, but differences disappeared after cooking. In backfat CS had lower moisture (6.5% vs. 6.9% and 7.8%) and higher lipid content (81.4 vs. 78.1 and 77.5%) than LWxCS and LW; concerning fatty acid composition, CS showed less SFA (saturated fatty acids; 36.2% vs. 37.12% and 37.7%) than the other two genotypes, and, together with LWxCS, less PUFA (polyunsaturated fatty acids; 10.4% and 10.2% vs. 11.1%) and more oleic acid (50.3% and 49.8% vs. 48.5%) than LW. Overall, evidence of additive genetic effects was present for most qualitative parameters with crosses showing intermediate values between parental breeds.

Multiple paternal origins of domestic cattle revealed by Y-specific interspersed multilocus microsatellites

In this study, we show how Y-specific interspersed multilocus microsatellites, which are loci that yield several amplified bands differing in size from the same male individual and PCR reaction, are a powerful source of information for tracing the history of cattle. Our results confirm the existence of three main groups of sires, which are separated by evolutionary time and clearly predate domestication. These three groups are consistent with the haplogroups previously identified by Götherström et al. (2005) using five Y-specific segregating sites: Y1 and Y2 in taurine (Bos taurus) cattle and Y3 in zebu (Bos indicus) cattle. The zebu cattle cluster clearly originates from a domestication process that was geographically and temporally separated from that of taurine clusters. Our analyses further suggest that: (i) introgression of wild sire genetic material into domesticated herds may have a significant role in the formation of modern cattle, including the formation of the Y1 haplogroup; (ii) a putative domestication event in Africa probably included local Y2-like wild sires; (iii) the West African zebu cattle Y-chromosome may have partially originated from an ancient introgression of humped cattle into Africa; and (iv) the high genetic similarity among Asian zebu sires is consistent with a single domestication process.

Productivity of Cinta Senese and Large White x Cinta Senese pigs reared outdoors in woodlands and indoors. 2. Slaughter and carcass traits

Abstract The aim of this paper was to study slaughter and carcass traits of Cinta Senese pigs, both pure and crossbred with Large White, reared outdoors in woodland and indoors. Sixteen Cinta Senese (CS) and 16 Large White x Cinta Senese (LWxCS) pigs were reared outdoors (OUT) on woodland pastures with some food supplementation; 70 animals (29 CS, 29 LWxCS and 12 LW) were reared indoors (IN), allotted in pens for genetic type and sex. Pigs were slaughtered at about 140 kg of live weight and at an age greater than 8 months. After slaughter, carcass length, thorax depth, number of vertebrae and backfat thickness were measured, and carcasses were dissected into lean, fat and bone cuts. Average daily gain to slaughter differed markedly among the five GTxRS combinations (598; 512; 438; 338; 250 g/d, respectively for LW-IN; LWxCS-IN; CS-IN; LWxCS-OUT; CS-OUT). LWxCS-IN and LWxCS-OUT had respectively the highest and the lowest dressing percentages (83.3% and 80.1%). A greater compactness of CS carcasses was evident from the length to depth ratio. In both farming systems CS pigs had the thickest backfat, and their differences with the other genetic types increased proportionally according to a cranio-caudal gradient. Moreover, CS pigs showed lower percentage of lean cuts and a higher percentage of fat cuts, than the other breeds. In the indoor system an additive effect was evident, with crossbred pigs showing lean cuts yields (62.8%) of almost intermediate value with respect to the parental breeds (57.7% for CS and 69.1% for LW). Some effects of the availability of woodland pastures on growth and carcass composition were also observed, particularly showing CS-OUT pigs’ higher percentage of backfat and kidney fat, and lower percentage of loin and shoulder than the CS-IN ones.

Fatores ambientais e genéticos sobre o crescimento ao ano e ao sobreano de bovinos Nelore, criados no Nordeste do Brasil

Data growth records relative to 2004 Nellore breed calves, from Ceara and Piaui states, were used to study the influence of environmental effects and to estimate the heritability of the weight traits at the 365 days (yearling) and 550 days (post-yearling) of age. The variance components were estimated by the restricted maximum likelihood method. In the analysis of variance a model that included the fixed effects of sex, year and season and herd of birth, and the age of dam as covariant and the random effect of sire within the herd, was used. The fixed effects of classification were significant for all evaluated traits. Least square means were 186.16 ± 2.74 kg and 244.06 ± 5.23 kg, for yearling and post-yearling weight respectively. Age of dam at calving influenced only the yearling weights, with estimated maximum weight of 187.29 kg and ages around nine years. Heritability estimates were .56 ± .09 and .64 ± .12, for yearling and post-yearling weight, respectively.

Productivity of Cinta Senese and Large White x Cinta Senese pigs reared outdoor on woodlands and indoor. 1. Growth and somatic development

Abstract Twenty-nine Cinta Senese (CS), 12 Large White (LW) and 29 LWxCS pigs were reared indoor and group fed on commercial mixtures in pens averaging 6 animals according to genetic type and sex. Seventeen CS and 16 LWxCS pigs were reared outdoor on woodland pastures (Quercus ilex, Castanea sativa) with minimum commercial mixtures supplementation. Both males and females were castrated. Since the age of 100 days morphological measures were recorded bimonthly (height at rump, body length, chest girth, width at shoulder, width at rump). To perform a statistical analysis, factors such as regression on age and allometric relationship on weight were taken into consideration, together with the fixed effect of genetic type x rearing system. In the indoor system, CS pigs reached 140 kg of live weight 30 and 100 days later than LWxCS and LW pigs, respectively. Moreover, CS conversion index was worse than that of LW pigs (i.e. 4.54 vs. 3.77 feed/gain) and CS backfat thickness was higher. During spring and summer, the outdoor system worsened the growth of backfat in both genetic types, as a consequence of scarce feed availability. However, cross pigs showed higher growth rate than CS breed. Allometric relationships analysis pointed out that CS pigs were taller, narrower at shoulder and at rump and shorter than LW pigs. Moreover, CS breed had higher chest girth than LW and the difference became more evident at higher weights. Crossbred pigs showed intermediate behaviour compared to parental breeds. Outdoor reared Cinta Senese pigs differed from those indoor in the evolution of body proportion, due to older age at a given weight and to the grazing activity. No differences were found with respect to for width values at rump, but outdoor CS pigs presented higher growth for width at shoulder and for chest girth. Thus, the outdoor system seems to intensify the development of the body forepart in Cinta Senese breed, already emphasised in this breed.

Genetic variability in three Italian beef cattle breeds derived from pedigree information

Abstract The aim of the present work was to estimate genetic variability in Chianina (CH), Marchigiana (MC) and Romagnola (RO) breeds using pedigree information. Different approaches based on probability of identity-by-descent (effective population size through an increase in inbreeding Ne) or probability of gene origin (total number of founders f, effective number of founders fe, ancestors fa and founder genomes fg) were used. Reference populations were defined using female animals born between 1996 and 2000 where both parents are known. Generation intervals were 5.35, 4.93 and 5.15 years for CH, MC and RO, respectively. The total number of founders were 7092, 11947, 3928, for CH, MC and RO, respectively. Complete generation equivalent showed the relative high quality of pedigree information: 5.66 for CH, 4.54 for MC and 4.95 for RO. For CH, MC and RO, respectively, a fe value of 152.1, 70.9 and 89.8, a fa value of 73.6, 48.0 and 59.5 and a fg value of 39.5, 25.0 and 38.5, were calculated. When inbreeding was used effective population sizes were 138, 122 and 124 for CH, MC and RO, respectively. Parameters derived from the probabilities of gene origin were variable among the investigated breeds and the results for MC demonstrate the need to pay specific attention to breeding strategies.

Performance of cinta senese pigs and their crosses with large white 2. physical, chemical and technological traits of tuscan dry-cured ham

Technological, chemical and physical traits of cured ham from Cinta Senese and Large White pigs, and their crosses were investigated. Hams were obtained from 29 Cinta Senese (CS), 29 Large White×Cinta Senese (LW×CS) and 12 Large White (LW) pigs, fed a commercial mixture. Sensory and chemical-physical analysis was performed on a sample-slice and on muscles (Biceps femoris - BF; Semimembranosus - SM; Semitendinosus - ST) and subcutaneous fat. CS showed the highest trimming loss and the lowest salting loss. Hams of CS pigs scored higher for fatness than those of LW pigs, LW×CS showing intermediate values. On sample-slice, CS exhibited higher firmness, redness and marbling of lean, and greater fat extension than LW, with crosses having intermediate scores. Muscle moisture was lowest in CS, while both SM and BF from LW had the highest percentage of protein and the lowest of ash. CS showed higher intramuscular fat content than LW×CS and LW. Shear force of BF was higher in CS than in LW×CS and LW. With respect to LW, CS had lower values of L(∗) in muscles, and higher values of a(∗) in subcutaneous fat. Subcutaneous fat of CS contained less SFA and more MUFA than LW×CS and LW.

Efeitos da endogamia sobre características de reprodução, crescimento e valores genéticos aditivos de bovinos da raça Pardo-Suíça

Inbreeding effects on calving interval (CI), birth weight (BW), weaning weight (WW) and on the direct and maternal breeding values for BW were evaluated in a purebred Brown Swiss herd raised in northeast Brazil. Data were collected from 1946 to 1993. Inbreeding coefficients (F) were estimated according to Wright method using the MTDFREML package. Breeding values were predicted by a BLUP animal model that included fixed effects of sex, month and year of birth, parity of dam and direct and maternal inbreeding as covariate. The relationship matrix included 1209 animals and the average and maximum inbreeding were 12.50% and 38.30% respectively. In general, increases in inbreeding levels were followed by reductions on direct breeding value for BW. Of the total variance, direct effects for BW accounted for 47% and maternal effects for 40%. For CI, the effects of sire of dam, parity of dam and year of birth were significant, and the regression coefficient of CI on direct inbreeding was 1.4. For BW, the effects of year of birth within period, sex, age of dam and linear and quadratic inbreeding of calf were significant. The effect of year of birth was significant for WW. Regression coefficient of WW on maternal inbreeding was -0.51±0,14 kg.