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Good Evening list Friends.
Here is a link to an article on the USDA's Agriculture Research Service
(ARS) internet magazine. It tells of current research into a gene
Myostatin which limits muscle growth in cattle--and in humans.
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/AR/archive/jul04/beef0704.htm
The article suggests that "If the gene responsible for producing
myostatin is altered so that it makes an inactive form of the protein,
or the gene is intentionally suppressed, the result is more muscle and
less fat. ARS researchers are working to find optimal ways to use this
gene--alongside others--to make beef more healthful, without sacrificing
taste and tenderness"
An interesting development toward the goal of improving the consistent
quality of beef R.G.
BTW. Check out the pictures on the left side of the web page. Do you
agree with my suspicion that they reversed the order of the second and
third cuts of beef. The article says of the third that, "This cut has
more meat, less fat, and less marbling than meat from cattle having no
copies or one copy of the gene."[ the second picture]. It appears to me
that it has more fat than the second cut, not less :-\
Regards
Ross Gould, P.Ag. Retired
Calgary, Alberta
