Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
8503159 | Meat Science | 2018 | 8 Pages |
Abstract
Twenty Angus steers were fed a diet low in β-carotene and vitamin A for 10 months. Ten steers were supplemented with vitamin A weekly, while the other ten steers did not receive any additional vitamin A. The results demonstrated that the restriction of vitamin A intake increased intramuscular fat (IMF) by 46%. This was a function of the total number of marbling flecks increasing by 22% and the average marbling fleck size increasing by 14%. Vitamin A restriction resulted in marbling flecks that were less branched (22%) and slightly more round (4%) with an increased minor axis length (7%). However, restricting vitamin A did not affect the size of the intramuscular or subcutaneous adipocyte cells or the subcutaneous fat depth. The results suggest that vitamin A affects the amount of marbling and other attributes of the marbling flecks due to hyperplasia rather than hypertrophy. This may explain why vitamin A restriction specifically affects IMF rather than subcutaneous fat deposition.
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Authors
Z.A. Kruk, M.J. Bottema, L. Reyes-Veliz, R.E.A. Forder, W.S. Pitchford, C.D.K. Bottema,