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  Growth Biology & Meat Science


Alden M. Booren, Professor
Principal Investigator, Meat Quality and Safety Laboratory
Depts. of Animal Science and Food Science and Human Nutrition
Alicia Orta-Ramirez, Visiting Research Assistant Professor and Laboratory Coordinator

The overall goal of our research program is to develop improved methods to optimize safety, yield and quality of muscle foods. Specific objectives include:

  1. to study the thermal inactivation of Salmonella spp in beef and poultry products under a variety of conditions,
  2. to design and validate a novel method to assess the adequacy of thermal processing in beef products,
  3. to develop a Salmonella inactivation model that takes into consideration intrinsic and extrinsic factors related to convection cooking of meat products, and
  4. to generate training materials designed for operations personnel in the US meat and poultry industry.

Recent changes in federal regulations have prompted the need to document pathogen lethality in commercial cooking processes designed for ready-to-eat meat and poultry products. However, there is not enough information that accounts for all variables that influence the fate of pathogens during cooking of these products. Often, commercial processes designed for a margin of safety result in overcooking which subsequently leads to detriment of product quality as well as economical loss due to lower yields. We are currently in the process of elucidating the effect of product composition and thermal process conditions on Salmonella destruction during cooking of ground and whole-muscle products. In addition, we are investigating the role of marinades and vacuum tumbling as potential vehicles of pathogen contamination in whole-muscle meat products. We have established collaborative development with MSU faculty in the Food Science and Agricultural Engineering Departments, as well as government, industry and faculty from another universities. Overall, our program incorporates research, extension and outreach activities in a cooperative approach to validating the microbial safety, quality and cooking yield of meat and poultry products.

Daniel Buskirk, Professor

Our research focuses on nutritional management of beef systems. Current research includes manipulating carcass traits by feeding regimen, and identifying factors affecting proliferation and differentiation of bovine preadipocytes. This will provide insight necessary to exploit developmental differences in adipose tissue depots through nutrition and management. The ultimate goal is to enhance the quality of consumer-driven beef products. Additional areas of research include calf weaning systems that reduce stress and improve gain, stocker cattle management strategies that optimize feed use, and cow feeding systems that improve forage utilization.

Matthew E. Doumit, Associate Professor
Principal Investigator, Muscle Biology Laboratory
Depts. of Animal Science and Food Science and Human Nutrition
Emily E. Helman, Research Associate and Laboratory Coordinator

The muscle biology laboratory focuses on acquisition of fundamental knowledge that will allow development of strategies to:

  1. improve the rate and efficiency of muscle accretion in livestock,
  2. identify livestock and carcasses that produce superior or inferior quality meat, and
  3. improve meat color, water-holding capacity and tenderness by manipulating biochemical events that affect these traits.

We currently use both muscle and preadipocyte cell cultures to elucidate the hormonal regulation of muscle and adipose tissue accretion. Recently, we developed an immunocytochemical method to determine the proportions of proliferating and differentiating satellite cells isolated from porcine skeletal muscle during growth (Mesires and Doumit, Am. J. Physiol. Cell Physiol. 282:C899-C906, 2002). Improvements in livestock muscularity are frequently associated with inferior meat quality characteristics. Our laboratory uses applied meat science methods to measure meat color, water-holding capacity and tenderness. Additionally, we use a variety of biochemical and molecular approaches to determine the biological basis for variation in meat quality characteristics (Allison et al., Meat Sci. 63:17-22, 2003). We have strong research collaborations with government and industry researchers, as well as MSU faculty in meat science, muscle biology, beef and swine nutrition, genetics and physiology.

Catherine W. Ernst, Associate Professor
Principal Investigator, Molecular Genetics Laboratory
Nancy Raney, Research Technician and Laboratory Coordinator

The overall goal of the Molecular Genetics Laboratory is to identify and evaluate molecular markers for the genetic improvement of pigs and beef cattle with emphasis on performance traits and carcass composition. Current research projects involve mapping and functional evaluation of genes and genetic markers in pigs and cattle, identification of differentially expressed genes in developing pig skeletal muscle, determination of nutritionally regulated gene expression patterns in pigs, and establishment of resource populations for identifying quantitative trait loci (QTL) for carcass merit and meat quality in pigs and beef cattle. A major emphasis area for the lab is comparative mapping of genes in the pig. Pig sequence-tagged sites (STS) are developed from human gene sequence and are placed on the INRA-University of Minnesota radiation hybrid map. These STS are also screened for the presence of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), which are then used for linkage mapping on the international PiGMaP or USDA-MARC genetic maps. Another major research area involves identification of differentially expressed genes in developing pig skeletal muscle in order to better understand the mechanisms controlling skeletal muscle growth and development. Initial studies have utilized differential display PCR and cDNA microarray analysis, and further transcriptional profiling studies are planned in collaboration with Dr. Matt Doumit. Similar techniques are also being employed in a collaborative study with Dr. Gretchen Hill to identify genes regulated by zinc supplementation of nursery pigs. An F2 swine resource population involving an initial cross of Pietrain and Duroc animals is currently under development in collaboration with Dr. Ron Bates. DNA, tissues and extensive phenotypic records are being stored for each animal in the population and when completed, the population will be one of the largest in the world for performing QTL analyses in swine. An F2 population is also being developed for beef cattle with Angus and Limousin foundation animals in collaboration with Drs. Dennis Banks and Richard Pursley. In addition to numerous collaborations with MSU scientists, projects in the molecular genetics lab also involve collaborations with other university, USDA and international scientists, including a collaboration with scientists at the National Food Centre in Dublin, Ireland.