| This study was carried out to evaluate carcass characteristics, chemical and fatty acid composition of the Longissimus muscle of 78 Purunã bulls (39 bulls/treatment) slaughtered at 18 or 24 months old. The experimental design was completely randomized. The bulls were distributed into two systems: 1) Finished in feedlot 13 to 18 months old (T18), or 2) Finished in feedlot from 21 to 24 months old (T24). The diet, roughage:concentrate ratio of 52:48 (dry matter basis), contained 12% crude protein and 72% total digestible nutrients. The T18 system showed lower (p < 0.05) conformation (12.46 vs. 13.41 points), higher (p < 0.05) subcutaneous fat thickness (3.82 vs. 3.11 mm), lower (p < 0.05) Longissimus area (66.17 vs. 70.87 cm2), lower (p < 0.05)... |
