Abstract
Simple SummaryIn the livestock industry, intramuscular fat content is an important indicator of the meat quality of domestic animals. The variations of the Acyl-CoA Synthetase Long-Chain Family Member 4 (ACSL4) gene locus are associated with intramuscular fat content in different pig populations, but the detailed molecular function of ACSL4 in pig intramuscular adipogenesis remains obscure. Our study reveals the function of ACSL4 in pig intramuscular adipogenesis and provides new clues for improving the palatability of meat and enhancing the nutritional value of pork for human health.The intramuscular fat is a major quality trait of meat, affecting sensory attributes such as flavor and texture. Several previous GWAS studies identified Acyl-CoA Synthetase Long Chain Family Member 4 (ACSL4) gene as the candidate gene to regulate intramuscular fat content in different pig populations, but the underlying molecular function of ACSL4 in adipogenesis within pig skeletal muscle is not fully investigated. In this study, we isolated porcine endogenous intramuscular adipocyte progenitors and performed ACSL4 loss- and gain-of-function experiments during adipogenic differentiation. Our data showed that ACSL4 is a positive regulator of adipogenesis in intramuscular fat cells isolated from pigs. More interestingly, the enhanced expression of ACSL4 in pig intramuscular adipocytes could increase the cellular content of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids, such as gamma-L eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). The above results not only confirmed the function of ACSL4 in pig intramuscular adipogenesis and meat quality attributes, but also provided new clues for the improvement of the nutritional value of pork for human health.
Highlights
Intramuscular fat (IMF) refers to the chemically extractable fat inside the muscle, predominantly from intramuscular adipocytes, which are derived from preadipocytes that reside in the muscle [1]
We found relatively high expression of Acyl-CoA Synthetase Long Chain Family Member 4 (ACSL4) in the liver, lung and spleen (Figure 2A), suggesting that the liver is the major organ for fatty acid synthesis
Our results clearly showed that ACSL4 overexpression can significantly increase the adipogenesis and lipid accumulation in porcine intramuscular preadipocytes, as demonstrated by the Oil Red O staining and marker gene expression
Summary
The underlying mechanisms controlling the adipogenic differentiation and fat deposition of porcine intramuscular preadipocytes remain poorly understood, and obviously involve genetic, nutritional, and environmental factors [2]. The IMF content varies in different pig breeds and even in different individuals within the same breed populations. Dozens of functional or candidate genes have been identified and genetic polymorphisms associated with IMF have been revealed [3]. The ACSL4 is one of the most frequently identified candidate genes related to IMF content in different population-based association studies in pigs [4,5,6,7,8]. A previous study reported that ACSL4 was involved in preadipocyte differentiation in pigs [9]
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