Effect of age at castration on animal performance, muscle characteristics and meat quality traits in 26-month-old Charolais steers

Micol, Didier; Oury, M; Picard, Brigitte; Hocquette, Jean-François; Briand, M.; Dumont, R; Egal, David; Jailler, Roland; Dubroeucq, H.; Agabriel, Jacques

doi:10.1016/j.livsci.2008.05.002

Cited by 24 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…The higher levels of insoluble collagen in bulls (DESTEFANIS et al, 2003) and muscle calpastatin (MICOL et al, 2009) make their meat less tender. Grass finishing, on the other hand, responsible for the high slaughter age and low carcasses finish, coupled with the large participation of Nellore in the herd (80% of the herd are Nellore or Nellorecross) and cooling rate of carcasses, accent softness, and color issues (FELÍCIO, 1994).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Age castration of Nellore males on the profile of fatty acids of meat

Missio

Restle

Freitas

et al. 2017

SCA

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This study aimed to evaluate the cholesterol content, α-tocopherol and fatty acids in the meat of Nellore young bulls or steers castrated at different ages, 13 or 18 months. The animals were confined for 100 days and slaughtered at 22 months of age. The experimental design was completely randomized with three treatments, using 12 repetitions. The levels of palmitic acid (26.39%), stearic (24.39%), myristic (3.01%) and total saturated fatty acids were not altered by sexual condition or castration age. Oleic was the fatty acid with the highest average participation in the meat (34.54%), and lower content in the meat of young bulls in relation to the castrated. The content of total unsaturated fatty acids was lower in the young bulls in relation to castrated at 18 months, which did not differ from castrated at 12 months. The content of total polyunsaturated fatty acids was increased by elevation of the castration age, being similar between young bulls and castrated at 18 months. The ratio ω6/ω3 was not altered by sexual condition or castration age. Castration at the beginning of the finishing period increases the content of beneficial fatty acids to health in relation to castrated in the first third of backgrounding. Key words: Unsaturated fatty acids. Saturated fatty acids. Linoleic. Oleic. ResumoObjetivou-se avaliar o conteúdo de colesterol, α-tocoferol e ácidos graxos da carne de machos inteiros ou castrados em diferentes idades (13 ou 18 meses) da raça Nelore. Os animais foram confinados por 100 dias e abatidos com 22 meses de idade. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi o inteiramente casualizado com três tratamentos, utilizando-se 12 repetições. Os teores dos ácidos palmítico (26,39%), esteárico (24,39%), mirístico (3,01%) e ácidos graxos saturados totais não foram alterados pela condição sexual e/ou idade à castração. O oleico foi o ácido graxo com maior participação média na carne (34,54%), com menor participação na carne dos inteiros em relação aos castrados. O teor de ácidos graxos insaturados totais foi menor na carne dos inteiros em relação aos castrados com 18 meses, que não diferiram dos castrados aos 12 meses. O teor dos ácidos graxos poliinsaturados foi aumentado pela elevação da idade à castração, sendo similar entre inteiros e castrados aos 18 meses. A relação ω6/ ω3 não foi alterada pela condição sexual e/ou idade à castração. A castração no início do período de

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The effects of castration age on animal performance and meat quality, although not fully elucidated, have been researched (MICOL et al, 2009;PRADO et al, 2014). However, little information concerning the fatty acid profile of the meat is available, especially for Nellore cattle.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Age castration of Nellore males on the profile of fatty acids of meat

Missio

Restle

Freitas

et al. 2017

SCA

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“…The bone tissue was not changed (P>0.05) by delaying the castration age from 13 to 18 months, with lower values found in the castrated compared with the intact animals ( Table 1). Evaluating two castration ages (2 or 7 months), Micol et al (2009) did not find alterations in the carcass tissues of Charolais steers, which was explained by the fact that the castration was performed before the establishment of the androgen receptors. Likewise, Climaco et al (2006) did not observe alterations in the amount of bone in the carcass between intact or castrated steers, which was attributed to the similar body development of these animals.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 88%

“…The moment of castration, in this scenario, seems to be the way to overcome this situation, as it can modulate the period of action of androgenic hormones, the main responsible for the differentiation of carcass and meat characteristics between intact and castrated animals (GALBRAITH et al, 1978;SEIDEMAN et al, 1982). The castration performed pre-puberty, in this regard, has been studied as an option to benefit the animal performance without impairing the carcass and meat characteristics (MICOL et al, 2009;PRADO et al, 2014). However, few studies have been carried out evaluating castration indices in feedlot-finished Nellore cattle, which would be relevant, since breed and nutrition are important factors to puberty in cattle (SCHILLO et al, 1992;CASAS et al, 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Carcass physical composition and physic-chemical characteristics of meat from Nellore cattle

et al. 2016

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Assessment of carcass physical composition and physicochemical characteristics of meat from Nellore males distributed randomly into three treatments: males castrated at 13 months of age at puberty (n=26); castrated at 18 months of age, 15 days before confinement (n=26); and young bulls (n=25). For the evaluation of meat chemical characteristics, we used samples of 12 animals taken at random from each treatment. The experimental design was completely randomized. Animals were slaughtered at 22 months of age after 100 days of confinement. The carcasses of young bulls showed higher contents of muscle (66.46 %) and bone (16.03 %), and lower fat content (17.66 %), in relation to that of steers castrated at 13 (62.83,15.28, and 22.11 %, respectively) or 18 months (63.99, 15.29, and 21.53%, respectively), which did not differ amongst themselves. The meat of young bulls was darker (3.07 points) than the meat from those castrated at 13 months of age (3.43 points), while the meat from those castrated at 18 months displayed an intermediate color (3.29 points), not differing from the others. Young bulls yielded meat with lower content of intramuscular fat (3.18 points) and lipids (3.81%) in relation to those castrated at 13 (4.58 points and 6.77%, respectively) or 18 months (4.52 points and 5.66%, respectively). Protein content was higher (P<.05) in meat from steers castrated at 13 months in relation to young bulls. The shear strength of the muscle fibers was not altered (P> 0.05) by the age of castration, with young bulls having lower values in relation to the castrated males. Castration of Nellore young bulls in early puberty increases the edible portion of the carcass due to the higher body fat deposit. Key words: Cattle. Sexual condition. Age at castration. Lipids. ResumoAvaliação da composição física da carcaça e das características físico-químicas da carne de tourinhos e novilhos Nelore distribuidos aleatoriamente em três tratamentos: machos castrados aos 13 meses de idade, no início da puberdade (n=26); castrados aos 18 meses, 15 dias antes do início do confinamento (n=26); e não castrados (n=25). O delineamento experimental utilizado foi o inteiramente casualizado com 12 repetições. Os animais foram abatidos com 22 meses de idade após 100 dias de confinamento. Os tourinhos apresentaram maior conteúdo de músculo (66,46%) e osso (16,03%), e menor conteúdo de gordura (17,66%) na carcaça em relação aos castrados com 13 (62,83; 15,28 e 22,11%, respectivamente) ou 18 meses (63,99; 15,30 e 20,96%, respectivamente), que não diferiram entre si. A carne de tourinhos foi mais escura (3,07 pontos) em relação aos castrados aos 13 meses de idade (3,43 pontos), enquanto a carne dos castrados aos 18 meses apresentou coloração intermediária (3,29 pontos), não diferindo dos demais. Tourinhos produziram carne com menor conteúdo de gordura intramuscular (3,18 pontos) e de lipídios (3,81%) em relação aos castrados com 13 meses (4,58 pontos e 6,77%, respectivamente) ou 18 meses de idade (4,52 pontos e 5,66%, respectivamente). O ...

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“…This would lead to an increase in the proportion of immature collagen, resulting in a further increase of crosslinking and consequently of insoluble collagen. The differences reported in the effect of castration could be related to the age of castration, which affected total collagen content in collagen-rich muscles as Triceps brachii muscle but not in Longissimus muscle in the studies by Destefanis et al (2003) and Micol et al (2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 92%

Impact of animal and management factors on collagen characteristics in beef: a meta-analysis approach

Alibés

Jurie²,

Micol³

et al. 2013

Animal

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The aim of this paper was to identify pre-slaughter factors that modify total and insoluble collagen contents in bovine muscle to construct a model of collagen dynamics. The meta-analyses were performed with primary data of total (n 5 1165) and insoluble (n 5 1145) collagen contents from INRA experiments obtained from different muscles in young bulls, cows and steers. According to both the bibliography and meta-analyses, total collagen content and solubility were greatly affected by the muscle (type). Moreover, the pattern of the evolution of collagen characteristics was similar among Longissimus, Semitendinosus and Triceps brachii muscles in young bulls. In cows, collagen contents in the Triceps brachii muscle had delayed dynamics compared with the other muscles. Collagen characteristics differed among breeds because of variation in the maturity of the breed. Similarly, according to the meta-analyses, total and insoluble collagen content evolutions with the degree of maturity (DOM; proportion of adult weight reached at slaughter) were different in dairy and rustic breeds from those of beef breeds, especially in bulls. Although the relationships between collagen content and DOM were quantified in different muscles and sexes, the precision of the fitted equations was not sufficient for prediction. Consequently, relying on the hypotheses raised by the meta-analysis and the literature, an approach to further develop a dynamic mechanistic model of soluble and insoluble collagen content is proposed.Keywords: total collagen, insoluble collagen, muscle, beef, meta-analysis ImplicationsThe meta-analyses of collagen characteristics identified and quantified the effect of muscle, DOM, breed and type of animal. However, the great variability of data made it difficult to use the fitted equations for the purpose of prediction. Hence, a model was constructed relying on the meta-analysis results and on physiological mechanisms. The model was constructed for total and insoluble collagen content for each type of muscle linked to an existing model for animal performance. This model will complement an existing model of other meat characteristics to construct a model to predict meat tenderness, according to animal management.

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Effect of age at castration on animal performance, muscle characteristics and meat quality traits in 26-month-old Charolais steers

Cited by 24 publications

References 34 publications

Age castration of Nellore males on the profile of fatty acids of meat

Age castration of Nellore males on the profile of fatty acids of meat

Carcass physical composition and physic-chemical characteristics of meat from Nellore cattle

Impact of animal and management factors on collagen characteristics in beef: a meta-analysis approach

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