Abstract
Myostatin is a negative regulator of skeletal muscle growth. Muscle tissue is the largest tissue in the body and influences body growth. Commercial Avian broiler chickens are selected for high growth rate and muscularity. Daweishan mini chickens are a slow growing small-sized chicken breed. We investigated the relations between muscle (breast and leg) myostatin mRNA expression and body and muscle growth. Twenty chickens per breed were slaughtered at 0, 30, 60, 90, 120, and 150 days of age. Body and muscle weights were higher at all times in Avian chickens. Breast muscle myostatin expression was higher in Avian chickens than in Daweishan mini chickens at day 30. Myostatin expression peaked at day 60 in Daweishan mini chickens and expression remained higher in breast muscle. Daweishan mini chickens myostatin expression correlated positively with carcass weight, breast and leg muscle weight from day 0 to 60, and correlated negatively with body weight from day 90 to 150, while myostatin expression in Avian chickens was negatively correlated with carcass and muscle weight from day 90 to 150. The results suggest that myostatin expression is related to regulation of body growth and muscle development, with two different regulatory mechanisms that switch between days 30 and 60.
Highlights
Muscle tissue is the largest tissue in the body and may directly influence whole body growth
Broiler chickens are characterized by a high body weight at slaughter and extremely fast growth rate from hatching to slaughter [4, 5], while Daweishan mini chickens (DMC) are a slow growing low body weight breed [6]
The objective of this research was to investigate the relationship between myostatin expression in breast and leg muscle and whole body growth rate, muscle development, and growth rate
Summary
Muscle tissue is the largest tissue in the body and may directly influence whole body growth. The relationship between myostatin mRNA expression, growth rate, muscle mass, and body weight in chickens is poorly understood. Broiler chickens are characterized by a high body weight at slaughter and extremely fast growth rate from hatching to slaughter [4, 5], while DMC are a slow growing low body weight breed [6]. The combination of these two breeds provides a perfect model system to investigate the biological mechanisms underlying growth rate and body weight in chickens. The objective of this research was to investigate the relationship between myostatin expression in breast and leg muscle and whole body growth rate, muscle development, and growth rate
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