title: Estimation of Growth Curves and Suitable Slaughter Weight of the Liangshan Pig.
abstract: The Liangshan pig is a traditional Chinese small-sized breed; it has a relatively long feeding period and low meat production ability but superior meat quality. This study utilized three non-linear growth models (Von Bertalanffy, Gompertz, and logistic) to fit the growth curve of Liangshan pigs from an unselected, random-bred pig population and estimate the pigs most suitable slaughter weight. The growth development data at 20 time points of 275 Liangshan pigs (from birth to 250 d) were collected. To analyze the relative gene expression related to development, seven slaughter weight phases (50, 58, 66, 74, 82, 90, and 98 kg) (20 pigs per phase) were examined. We found that the Liangshan pig growth curve fit the typical S-curve well and that their growth turning point was 193.4 days at a weight of 62.5 kg, according to the best fit Von Bertalanffy model based on the goodness of fit criteria. Furthermore, we estimated that the most suitable slaughter weight was 62.5 to 74.9 kg based on the growth curve and the relative expression levels of growth-related genes.
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Ya'an 625014, China.
authors.forename: Jia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Ya'an 625014, China ; Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2P5, Canada .
authors.forename: Huaigang
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lei
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Ya'an 625014, China.
authors.forename: Linyuan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.affiliation: Mabian Gold LiangShan Agricultural Development Co., LTD, Mabian, Sichuan 614600, China .
authors.forename: Runlin
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Ya'an 625014, China.
authors.forename: Qiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Pu
authors.affiliation: Sichuan Tequ Investment Group Ltd Co., Chengdou 610200, China .
authors.forename: Kangping
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Ya'an 625014, China.
authors.forename: Mingzhou
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Ya'an 625014, China.
authors.forename: Guoqing
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Ya'an 625014, China.
authors.forename: Xuewei
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Ya'an 625014, China.
authors.forename: Shunhua
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University, Ya'an 625014, China.
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhu
keywords: Growth Curve; Growth Development; Liangshan Pig; Non-linear Model; Slaughter Weight