Qualitative and quantitative assessment of beef productivity in Aberdeen-Angus cows and heifers depending on the C73T/C528T haplotype in leptin gene

Special attention is paid to polymorphic variants of leptin gene when organizing MAS selection in beef cattle breeding. In this regard, the purpose of our research was a quantitative and qualitative assessment of meat productivity in Aberdeen-Angus cows and heifers depending on the C73T / C528T haplotype of leptin gene. The study focused on cows after the first calving (age 32 months, n = 30) and heifers (age 20 months, n = 49) of Aberdeen-Angus breed. The data analysis showed that the rank of distribution did not repeat across the age categories of carriers by weight of chilled carcasses in particular combinations. The best quality carcasses were obtained from heifers with a combination of TT / CC, CT / CT and CC / CT genotypes. The highest categories (Prime and Top Choice) were 70.0; 69.2 and 66.6% of carcasses, respectively. Genetic variability in leptin gene in the second exon (C73T) and promoter (C528T) regions in Aberdeen-Angus cows and heifers determined the differences in meat productivity. The combination of heterozygous CT / CT genotypes was recognized as the most preferred for selection in mature herd for a complex of traits of quantitative and qualitative assessment of meat productivity.