Chemical, physical and sensory properties of meat from pure and crossbred Podolian bulls at different ageing times A. Braghieri, G.F. Cifuni, A. Girolami, A.M. Riviezzi, I. Marsico, F. Napolitano * Dipartimento di Scienze delle Produzioni Animali, Universita ` degli Studi della Basilicata, Via dellÕAteneo Lucano 10, 85100 Potenza, Italy Received 2 August 2004; received in revised form 24 October 2004; accepted 29 October 2004 Abstract The present study aimed to investigate the effect of crossbreeding with Limousine sires on fatty acid profile, physical and sen- sory properties of meat produced by Podolian young bulls. Polyunsaturated fatty acid content was influenced by crossbreeding (P < 0.01) with Podolian bulls (P) producing beef characterised by a higher level of unsaturation in comparison with crossbred animals (LP). As a consequence, P/S ratio was significantly higher in meat produced by P animals than LP (P < 0.01). P animals had higher linoleic (P < 0.05), linolenic (P < 0.05), EPA (P < 0.05) and DHA acids (P < 0.001) levels than LP subjects. No breed effect was observed for the ratio n À 6/n À 3(P > 0.05). WBS force of LD was significantly lower in meat from crossbred subjects (P < 0.05). Both crossbreeding with Limousine and extension of ageing from 2 to 7 days improved LD tenderness as assessed by panel taste (P < 0.001). Ó 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Podolian cattle; Crossbreeding; Ageing; Fatty acid composition; Tenderness 1. Introduction Meat produced by cattle are usually characterised by a low polyunsaturated to saturated fatty acid (P:S) ratio due to the massive hydrogenating action performed by rumen micro-organisms on dietary fatty acids. However, these products often show a beneficially balanced n À 6/ n À 3 ratio, which is particularly low when animals are fed on grass based diets (Enser et al., 1998). Neverthe- less, in addition to other factors (diet, sex, age, etc.), the effect of breed on adipose tissue and muscle fatty acid composition may be relevant. Numerous studies have reported that sire breed can affect meat fatty acid profile (Xie, Bushboom, Gaskins et al., 1996; Zembay- ashi & Nishimura, 1996; Zembayashi, Nishimura, Lunt, & Smith, 1995). Because of the low fat content of mus- cles, lean breeds can have a different fatty acid profile compared with meat from other breeds. In cattle, poly- unsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are preferentially deposited in phospholipids. As a consequence, lean breeds tend to have a higher proportion of PUFA as compared to fatter cattle breeds, whereas in these latter genotypes muscles have a higher incidence of neutral triacylglycerols (De Smet, Webb, Claeys, Uytterhaegen, & Demeyer, 2000). The lower fat content of muscles of lean breeds can also account for the higher ratio n À 6/ n À 3 due to the greater proportion of phospholipids ob- served in these animals. Phospholipids display lower lev- els of linolenic and higher contents of linoleic and arachidonic fatty acids than triacylglycerols (Bas & Sau- vant, 2001), which in turn increase in proportion as total lipids increase (Marmer, Maxwell, & Williams, 1984). Previous studies reported that both double muscled 0309-1740/$ - see front matter Ó 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.meatsci.2004.10.019 * Corresponding author. Tel.: +39 0971 205078; fax: +39 0971 205099. E-mail address: napolitano@unibas.it (F. Napolitano). www.elsevier.com/locate/meatsci Meat Science 69 (2005) 681–689 MEAT SCIENCE