Effect of negative dietary cation‐anion differences on carcass characteristics and beef tenderness of Japanese Black steers

• Published in: Animal science journal Vol. 89; no. 1; pp. 132 - 139
• Main Authors: Ishida, Kyohei, Hirano, Kazuo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Australia Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.01.2018
• Subjects: Acidification; Animal Feed; Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena - physiology; Animals; Anions; Anions - administration & dosage; Beef; beef tenderness; Calcium - metabolism; Calpain; Calpain - analysis; Calpain - metabolism; Carcasses; Cations; Cations - administration & dosage; Cattle; Cattle - metabolism; Diet; Diet - veterinary; dietary cation‐anion differences; Dietary Supplements; Dry matter; Energy intake; Food Analysis; Food Quality; Homeostasis; Hormones; Japanese Black; Male; Meat - analysis; pH effects; Proteolysis; Slaughter; Slaughtering; Urine; calpain; Japanese Black; beef tenderness; dietary cation-anion differences
• ISSN: 1344-3941; 1740-0929
• DOI: 10.1111/asj.12918

Lowering dietary cation‐anion differences (DCAD) can enhance responsiveness to Ca‐homeostatic hormones and increase Ca availability, which might have potential to activate a Ca‐dependent protease, calpain, and to enhance postmortem myofibrillar proteolysis. In this study, we investigated the effects of DCAD manipulation on calpain activity and beef tenderness in Japanese Black cattle which are characterized by their high marbling. Thirty‐six Japanese Black steers were allotted to one of two treatments: (i) control (CON; DCAD +6.09 mEq/100 g of dry matter (DM)) or (ii) negative DCAD (NEGD; DCAD −8.27 mEq/100 g DM) for 70 days before slaughter. Lowering DCAD decreased DM and energy intake (P < 0.01) even though it did not negatively affect the growth performance or carcass characteristics. In NEGD, urine pH was decreased by acidification caused by the negative DCAD (P < 0.01). Calpain activities tended to be improved in NEGD (P = 0.09), but Warner‐Bratzler shear force values were not affected by treatment. Although calpain activities tended to improve, lowering DCAD to −8.27 for 70 days before slaughter was insufficient to enhance beef tenderness in Japanese Black steers.