The Genetics of Light and Dark Meat Turkey Explained Here’s one of my Thanksgiving Day science tidbits for ya … the genetic basis of white meat vs. dark meat. We’ve known for ages that ground-dwelling birds like chickens and turkeys have dark, myoglobin-rich slow-twitch muscle in their hindquarters, and pale muscle in the breast since they don’t use their wings (contrast that to a duck breast). But there’s even more at work: White and dark meat differ in appearance because each is made up of a distinct type of muscle fiber. Dark meat comprises so-called slow twitch muscle fibers, which are specialized for extended exertion, whereas white meat is made up of fast twitch fibers that fuel short, intense bursts of energy. That much has been known for some time. The genetic mechanism underlying the specification of one muscle type versus the other was unclear, however. Philip Ingham of the University of Sheffield and his colleagues studied muscle cells of developing zebrafish and found that a gene dubbed u-boot (ubo) plays a key role in determining what type of muscle develops by controlling the transcription factor protein known as Blimp-1. Go drop that one on your family around the table and tell them you actually learned something on the internet today! (via Scientific American)
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The Genetics of Light and Dark Meat Turkey Explained

Here’s one of my Thanksgiving Day science tidbits for ya … the genetic basis of white meat vs. dark meat.

We’ve known for ages that ground-dwelling birds like chickens and turkeys have dark, myoglobin-rich slow-twitch muscle in their hindquarters, and pale muscle in the breast since they don’t use their wings (contrast that to a duck breast). But there’s even more at work:

White and dark meat differ in appearance because each is made up of a distinct type of muscle fiber. Dark meat comprises so-called slow twitch muscle fibers, which are specialized for extended exertion, whereas white meat is made up of fast twitch fibers that fuel short, intense bursts of energy. That much has been known for some time. The genetic mechanism underlying the specification of one muscle type versus the other was unclear, however. Philip Ingham of the University of Sheffield and his colleagues studied muscle cells of developing zebrafish and found that a gene dubbed u-boot (ubo) plays a key role in determining what type of muscle develops by controlling the transcription factor protein known as Blimp-1.

Go drop that one on your family around the table and tell them you actually learned something on the internet today!

(via Scientific American)

Source: scientificamerican.com

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