Heritability and Variance Component Estimates of Meat Quality in Japanese Quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica)

Authors: YAKUT GEVREKÇİ, İSMAİL OĞUZ, MUSTAFA AKŞİT, ALPER ÖNENÇ, DEMİR ÖZDEMİR, ÖZGE ALTAN

Abstract: A comparison of 3 methods for variance component estimation to compute the heritability of meat quality characteristics (body weight, breast meat weight, breast yield, l, a, b, c, h, and ph) was performed using the methods of maximum likelihood (ML), restricted maximum likelihood (REML), and minimum variance quadratic unbiased estimator (MIVQUE). The parent population was set up at random from a closed population of Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica). Selection was not applied for any productive characteristics and no special care was taken to avoid inbreeding. After 12-h feed withdrawal, the birds were weighed and slaughtered at 35 days of age. Their carcasses were dissected. Then 24-h postmortem and breast meat (pectoralis major and pectoralis minor) weights (BRW) were measured. Ultimate pH values (pHu) of the left breast meat were measured with a pH meter (Hanna Instrument Model 8314) using a penetration electrode (FC-200) after 24 h post-mortem. Color measurements (brightness ´´l´´, redness ´´a´´, yellowness ´´b´´, chroma ´´c´´, and hue ´´h´´) of the left breast meat were carried out using a Minolta CM508d spectrocolorimeter connected to a computer. Heritabilities of meat quality characteristics estimated by maximum likelihood (ML), restricted maximum likelihood (REML) and minimum variance quadratic unbiased estimation (MIVQUE) ranged from moderate to high.

Keywords: Heritability, ML, REML, MIVQUE

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