388. Pleiotropic effects on carcass and meat quality traits in crossbred beef cattle

Abstract

Our objective was to identify genomic regions with pleiotropic effects on carcass and meat quality traits in a multibreed Angus-Brahman population. Data included phenotypes from 2,384 steers, of which 1,038 were genotyped. Single-trait genome-wide association studies were first used to investigate the relevance of additive genetic effects. A second analysis was performed to capture genomic regions with pure direct effects on each trait, removing regions with indirect effects. Four pleiotropic (BTA5, BTA7 and BTA18) and two suggestive pleiotropic regions (BTA10 and BTA19) were identified. Candidate genes encode key players in cell growth, muscle development, lipid metabolism and fat deposition. Functional analysis revealed GO terms directly related to carcass quality, meat quality, and tenderness in beef cattle, including calciumrelated processes, and modulation of cell-cell adhesion. These results contribute with novel information about the complex genetic architecture of carcass and meat quality traits in crossbred beef cattle.