Animal growth curves can provide essential information for animal breeders to optimize feeding and management strategies. However, the genetic mechanism underlying the phenotypic differentiation between the inflection point and asymptotic stages of the growth curve is not well characterized. Here, we employed Liangshan @entity1707 in stages of growth at the inflection point (under inflection point: @entity2416 ) and the two asymptotic stages (before the inflection point: @entity69809 , after the inflection point: @entity6052 ) as models to survey global gene expression in the longissimus dorsi muscle using digital gene expression (DGE) tag profiling. We found Liangshan @entity1707 reached maximum growth rate ( @entity2416 ) at 163.6 days of age and a weight of 134.6 kg. The DGE libraries generated 117 million reads of 5.89 gigabases in length. 21,331, 20,996 and 20,139 expressed transcripts were identified @entity69809 , @entity2416 and @entity6052 , respectively. Among them, we identified 757 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between @entity69809 and @entity2416 , and 271 DEGs between @entity6052 and @entity2416 . An enrichment analysis of DEGs proved the immune system was strengthened in the @entity6052 stage. Energy metabolism rate, global transcriptional activity and bone development intensity were highest @entity2416 . Meat from Liangshan @entity1707 had the highest intramuscular fat content and most favorable @entity844 composition in the @entity6052 . Three hundred eighty (27.70%) specific expression genes were highly enriched in QTL regions for growth and meat quality traits. This study completed a comprehensive analysis of diverse genetic mechanisms underlying the inflection point and asymptotic stages of growth. Our findings will serve as an important resource in the understanding of animal growth and development in indigenous @entity1707 breeds.

Transcriptome Analysis of Liangshan XXXX Muscle Development at the Growth Curve Inflection Point and Asymptotic Stages Using Digital Gene Expression Profiling.

@entity1707 :: ('9823', 'Species') :: ['pigs', 'pig'] @entity844 :: ('CHEBI:35366', 'Chemical') :: ['fatty acid'] @entity69809 :: ('407060(Tax:9823)', 'Gene') :: ['BIP'] @entity2416 :: ('MESH:D054990', 'Disease') :: ['UIP'] @entity6052 :: ('MESH:D017118', 'Disease') :: ['AIP']
@entity1707 :: (9823,Species) :: ['Pig']
