Pig biology: serum enzymes and their correlation with physicochemical properties and chemical composition of muscle tissue

Abstract

The paper presents the results of the study of some biochemical indicators of blood serum, physicochemical properties, and chemical composition of muscle tissue of young pigs of the large white breed, as well as the calculation of correlations between the main quantitative characteristics. The work was carried out in agricultural formations of the Dnipropetrovsk region, the Scientific Research Center for Biosafety and Environmental Control of Agricultural Resources of the Dnipro State Agrarian and Economic University, LLC “Globynskyi Myasokbinat” of the Poltava Region, the Laboratory of Zootechnical Analysis of the Institute of Pig Breeding and Agro-Industrial Production of the National Academy of Sciences, and the Animal Husbandry Laboratory of the State Institution “Institut of grain crops of NAAS”. Control fattening and slaughtering of the animals of the experimental group was carried out on the condition that they reached a live weight of 105–115 kg. The selection of blood samples for biochemical studies was carried out in 5-month-old animals; the activity of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, and α-amylase was determined in blood serum. Physico-chemical properties and chemical composition of the longest muscle of the back (m. longissimus dorsi) were studied according to the indicators “moisture-retaining capacity, %”, “color intensity, units ext. × 1000”, “tenderness, c”, “fat content, %”, “total moisture content, %”, “protein content, %”, “losses during heat treatment, %” and “energy value of muscle tissue, kcal”. A comprehensive assessment of meat quality was determined according to the methods of A. M. Polyvoda and others, biometric processing of research results was carried out according to the methods of V. P. Kovalenko and others. It was established that the biochemical parameters of the blood serum of young pigs of the large white breed at the age of 5 months correspond to the physiological norm of clinically healthy animals. Thus, the activity of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) is 1.33 ± 0.074 mmol/h/l, alanine aminotransferase (ALT) is 1.87 ± 0.063 mmol/h/l, alkaline phosphatase is 291.99 ± 12.517 units/l, and amylase – 169.82 ± 5.005 g/h × l. Studies of the physicochemical properties and chemical composition of samples of the longest back muscle of young pigs of the large white breed show that the number of high-quality samples according to the indicators “moisture-holding capacity, %” equals 12.0 %, “color intensity, units ext. × 1000” – 16.0 %, “tenderness, c” – 12.0 % and “fat content, %” – 16.0 %. Significant correlations were established between the following pairs of traits: moisture-holding capacity × protein content (-0.484 ± 0.1825, tr = 2.65), moisture-holding capacity × losses during heat treatment (-0.416 ± 0.1896, tr = 2.19), fat content × moisture-holding capacity (-0.450 ± 01862, tr = 2.42), fat content × energy value (+0.836 ± 0.1144, tr = 7.31), alanine aminotransferase activity × pH, (+0.443 ± 0.1859, tr = 2.37), alkaline phosphatase activity × color intensity (-0.483 ± 0.1826, tr = 2.65), alkaline phosphatase activity × phosphorus content (+0.484 ± 0.1825, tr = 2, 65). Further work in this direction involves conducting a study of the qualitative composition of muscle and fat tissues of young pigs of various intrabreed and interbreed combinations, taking into account their genotype according to some DNA markers.