Adenosine and adenosine 5′-monophosphate in fattening pig diets – Abstracts

The global meat industry is experiencing significant expansion, especially in the market for red meat such as pork. Traditionally, pork has been the primary source of protein for consumers. However, their nutritional content and overall quality have declined due to the recent focus on enhancing growth rates and increasing the proportion of lean meat. As the proportion of lean meat in pork increases, the intramuscular fat content also tends to decrease, which affects meat quality parameters such as taste, flavor and color. The pork industry is making efforts to reduce subcutaneous fat deposition in pigs and, at the same time, improve meat quality. One promising approach to achieve this is the incorporation of nutritional additives capable of reducing subcutaneous fat deposition without altering intramuscular fat content. Nucleotides, as a new generation of non-toxic, harmless and safe food additives, play an important role in promoting intestinal maturation, development of intestinal mucosa, growth performance, metabolism and fat metabolism. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the effect of adenosine and adenosine 5-monophosphate (AMP) supplementation on growth performance, carcass characteristics, meat quality and lipid metabolism in pigs and adipose tissue of fattening pigs. Pigs were divided into three treatment groups: control diet, 0.2% adenosine diet, or 0.2% AMP diet.

The results showed that compared with the control group, both the adenosine group and the AMP group increased the straight length of the carcass and reduced the drip loss, while the AMP group tended to increase the red color value and reduce the free amino acid content in the longitudinal pectoral muscle. Furthermore, adenosine or AMP supplementation increased the adenosine or AMP content in serum, adipose tissue, and pectoralis longus muscle, as well as the protein level of adenosine 2A receptors in adipose tissue. On the other hand, both adenosine and AMP groups showed increased expression of lipolysis genes (ATGL and HSL) in adipose tissue.

In conclusion, supplementation with adenosine 5′-monophosphate can improve meat quality, and supplementation with adenosine and adenosine 5′-monophosphate regulates lipid metabolism in obese pigs.

Rao S, Cui Z, Zhang L, Ma S, Huang S, Feng L, Chen Y, Luo J, Li J, Qian S, Liu Y, Yang L, Yin Y, Tan C. Effects of dietary adenosine and adenosine 5′-effect Monophosphate supplementation on carcass characteristics, meat quality and lipid metabolism in adipose tissue of finishing pigs. Meat Science. 2023; 201: 109174. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.meatsci.2023.109174