Grain Feeding Improves Yak Meat Tenderness and Lipid Deposition: Meat Quality, Amino Acid and Fatty Acid Profiles, Metabolomics, and Transcriptomics.

ABSTRACT: Grain feeding is used to alleviate grazing pressure on the Tibetan Plateau. This study employed metabolomics and transcriptomics to elucidate the regulatory mechanisms of grain feeding on yak (Bos grunniens) meat quality, intramuscular fat, and amino acids. The results demonstrate that grain feeding significantly reduces meat shear force (11.05 vs. 18.98) and increases intramuscular fat content (1.48 g/100 g vs. 0.75 g/100 g). This is accompanied by elevated levels of monounsaturated and saturated fatty acids, alongside a decreased proportion of n-3 PUFAs, leading to a higher n-6/n-3 ratio of 5.13. Mechanistically, metabolomic analysis identified 83 differential metabolites, including flavor-related nucleosides, amino acids, and key lipids, such as palmitoleic and oleic acid, which collect

SUBMITTER: Zou B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12785483 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature