OUR GOAL IS TO UNDERSTAND HOW TISSUES SPECIFICALLY MUSCLE ARE CAPABLE OF DECIDING WHETHER TO GROW OR SIMPLY REMAIN IN A NON-GROWING STATE. THIS IS PARTICULARLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE IN CASES WHERE OPTIMAL NUTRIENTS ARE AVAILABLE ANIMALS GROWTH NORMALLY. HOWEVER WHEN NUTRIENT INTAKES ARE COMPROMISED EITHER THROUGH PERIODS OF STARVATION CHALLENGING DISEASE STATES ELEVATED TEMPERATURES ETC. ANIMALS DO NOT GROW. THERE ARE LIMITED MEANS BY WHICH WE KNOW HOW CELLS MONITOR NUTRIENT AVAILABILITY IN THEIR ENVIRONMENTS. RECENTLY IN THE MORE BASIC LITERATURE SCIENTISTS HAVE REPORTED THE EXISTENCE OF A COMPOUND IN CELLS THATREFLECT THE AMOUNT OF ENERGY PROTEIN AND FAT AVAILABLE FOR GROWTH. WE HYPOTHESIZE THATTHIS SIGNALING EVENT IS ALSO IN THE MUSCLE OF PIGS AND IT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR MODULATING GROWTH. WE PLAN TO TEST THIS HYPOTHESIS BY DETERMINING ITS EXISTENCE IN PIGS BY USING VARIOUS EXISTING GENOTYPES OF PIGS FED DIFFERENT DIETS WHICH WILL CHANGE THE AVAILABLILITY OF NUTRIENTS TO THE MUSCLE. WE EXPECT THAT PIGS FEDADEQUETELY WILLACTIVATE THIS PATHWAY IN MUSCLEWHILE THOSE FED SUB-OPPTIMALLY WILLLACKACTIVATION OF THIS PATHWAY AND WILL NOT EXPERIENCE GROWTH.ONCEWE CAN IDENTIFY THE EXISTENCE OF THIS PATHWAY IN PIGS THEN WE MAY BE ABLE TO INCREASE THE EFFICIENCY OF PORK PRODUCTION IN THE US BY TARGETING IT NUTRITIONALLY OR OTHERWISE SO THAT ANIMALS CAN RECOVER SOONER AFTER A BOUT WITHDISEASE ORSOME OTHERENVIRONMENTAL OR MANAGEMENT CHALLEGE. THIS COULD SAVE THE PORK INDUSTRY MILLIONS OF DOLLARSIN SAVED FEED COSTS AND WASTED RESOURCES.