The carcasses of 800 steers derived from rotational crossbreeding between Charolais and Nellore breeds, slaughtered at two years of age, were evaluated. The evaluated characteristics were the following: conformation, cushion thickness, arm perimeter, Longissimus dorsi area, Longissimus dorsi area divided by 100 kg of cold carcass weight (AOL100). Two models were used for the data analyses: Model 1 included the genetic effects of the breeding system and steer genetic group nested within the breeding system and Model 2 corresponded to Model 1, but the breeding and genetic group were substituted by the covariables corresponding to the percentage of Charolais breed of the individual and its mother and the percentage of heterozygosis of the individual and its mother. From the analysis in Model 1, Charolais steers were superior to the Nelores in all assessed traits. The retained heterosis was significant for conformation (4.2%), cushion thickness (3.2%), arm perimeter (4.2%), Longissimus dorsi area (7.3%) and AOL100 (-6.7%). The individual additive genetic effect of Charolais breed regarded to Nelore was 1.89 points for conformation, 1.37 cm for cushion thickness, 2.55 cm for arm perimeter, 12.70 cm² for Longissimus dorsi area and 3.13 cm² for AOL100. The individual heterotic genetic effect (regarded to the straightbred mean) was 3.9% for conformation, 3.8% for cushion thickness, 3.1% for arm perimeter and 9.8% for Longissimus dorsi area. Maternal heterosis is significant only for arm perimeter (1.6%) and AOL100 (-5.4%). The nonadditive genetic effects, represented by epistasis and linkage, do not influence the evaluated characteristics.
Bos indicus; Bos taurus; continuous alternate crossbreeding; crossbreeding systems; model comparisons; young steer production
