RNA sequencing of longissimus dorsi muscle of Tibetan sheep at different ages

Carcass performance, meat quality and comparative transcriptome analysis were conducted to investigate the potential molecular mechanism of the meat quality difference of LT muscle caused by different growth stages in Tibetan sheep. A total of sixteen female Tibetan sheep including 4-months-old (4 m), 1.5-years-old (1.5 y), 3.5-years-old (3.5 y), and 6-years-old (6 y) were selected. In summary, it was the most suitable slaughter age of Tibetan sheep at 1.5 y with better meat tenderness and higher IMF content. LIPE, LEP, ADIPOQ, SCD, FASN and so on genes might be involved in AMPK signaling pathway to regulate the transformation of muscle fiber types, which further influence meat quality.