Integrated analysis of metabolomics and transcriptomics reveals key metabolites and genes of flavor formation in yellow-feathered broilers

The three high-quality broiler strains employed in this study originated from S3, F and H line hens developed by the Jiangsu Provincial Poultry Science Research Institute (Jiangsu, China). The S3 strain exhibits yellow plumage, green shanks, feed efficiency and excellent meat quality. The H strain features yellow plumage, yellow shanks, slow growth rate and superior meat quality, whilst the F strain possesses yellow-grey plumage, green shanks and rapid growth characteristics. Chickens from all three strains were hatched in the same batch and reared under identical husbandry conditions with ad libitum access to feed and water. Chickens within the same strain share a common genetic background. At the designated slaughter age, three healthy hens from each strain were selected for slaughter. One side of the breast muscle and thigh muscle were collected for transcriptomic sequencing.