Effect of TG and DGAT1 polymorphisms on beef carcass traits and fatty acid profile

The objectives of this study were to determine allele frequency and genotype count of thyroglobulin (TG) and diacylglycerol-0-acyltransferase-1 (DGAT1) genes encoding the TG and DGAT1 enzymes, and to determine the effect of TG and DGAT1 polymorphisms on fatty acid profile in beef carcass. All genotypes were determined by PC-RFLP assay. Polymorphism of TG and DGAT1 had no significant influence on total lipid content, backfat thickness, EUROP and carcass conformation score. The TT genotype of TG gene resulted in a lower total lipid content and backfat thickness, while KK genotype of DGAT1 gene showed a greater total lipid content and backfat thickness. The content of the majority fatty acids in MLD and subcutaneous fat tissue was not significantly affected by TG and DGAT1 polymorphism. The results confirm the lack of an association found by other studies. Further research should be carried out to validate the initial observation