Animal Breeds and Muscle Growth Potential: Opportunities for Sustainable Farming

Dear Colleagues,

Understanding myogenesis and the muscle growth potential of various animal breeds is of major importance for implementing sustainable farming practices. Different livestock breeds, ranging from cattle, sheep, and swine to poultry, show significant variability in their muscle growth rates, feed efficiency, and adaptation to farming conditions. Highly selected breeds tend to have higher muscle growth, leading to optimized meat production while requiring fewer land resources. However, these breeds often need high-quality feed, water, and veterinary care to maintain a high productivity level, while causing negative consequences on the surrounding environment such as waste production and greenhouse gas emissions. In contrast, certain breeds, comprising autochthonous or local breeds, are naturally resilient to regional diseases and climate stress factors, reducing the need for antibiotics and other sanitary interventions. More focus should be placed on breeds that present high muscle growth potential and that, at the same time, show high adaptability to their environment. Understanding myogenesis and the muscle growth potential of specific breeds can help farmers meet growing high-quality meat demands while promoting a resilient and sustainable agricultural system that preserves the environment and allows for a high level of meat production.

While meat production is highly important, the mechanisms that regulate muscle growth and development are still not well understood. The conventional approach to assessing muscle growth and quality focuses on evaluating the physical and chemical properties of muscle. Recently, these methodologies have been complemented by morphological and imaging assessments to better understand how muscle microstructure relates to growth and its physicochemical properties and, ultimately, to the overall quality of meat.

Therefore, the aim of this Special Issue is focused on original research articles or reviews that investigate the mechanisms of muscle growth in different animal breeds and their relationships with the surrounding environment. Areas of interest include the effects of the animal breed on muscle growth potential and meat quality and its structure.

We invite you to share your recent findings in this Special Issue and we look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Maria Lucia Matela da Silva Aidos
Dr. Maria Chiara Di Meo
Guest Editors

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