PROVIDING CONSUMERS WITH A CONSISTENTLY HIGH-QUALITY BEEF MEAT PRODUCT CONTINUES TO PROVIDE CHALLENGES TO THE BEEF INDUSTRY.GENETIC SELECTION FOR QUALITY MEAT HAS RESULTED IN OVERALL IMPROVEMENT OF PRODUCT QUALITY BUT HAS NOT ADDRESSED PRODUCT CONSISTENCY OR EFFICIENCY OF GENERATING A HIGH-QUALITY PRODUCT. THE OVERALL HYPOTHESIS OF THIS WORK IS THAT MEAT QUALITY IS IMPACTED BY THE FUNCTIONS OF MUSCLE AND ADIPOSE TISSUE AND IS UNDER MULTIPLE LEVELS OF REGULATION INCLUDING THE GENOME, GENE EXPRESSION, AND SYSTEMIC REGULATION.THE AIMS OF THIS RESEARCH ARE: 1) MEASURE GENE EXPRESSION IN MUSCLE AND ADIPOSE TISSUE WITH INCREASING AGE AND FATNESS OF THE ANIMAL; 2) MEASURE SMALL CIRCULATING METABOLITE MOLECULES AND LONG NON-CODING RNA THAT COULD BE INFLUENCING BODY COMPOSITION WITH INCREASING AGE AND DEGREE OF FATNESS; 3) BUILD A MODEL THAT INCORPORATES MULTIPLE LEVELS OF REGULATION ASSOCIATED WITH INCREASING AGE AND FATNESS IN BEEF CATTLE; AND 4) SHARE MODELS AND MODEL BUILDING DATA WITH THESCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY AND CATTLE FEEDING INDUSTRYTO ALLOW BETTER PREDICTION OF MEAT QUALITY IN MATURING AND FATTENING BEEF CATTLE. THIS PROJECT WILL GIVE US A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF HOW MEAT QUALITY IS IMPACTED BY AGE AND DEGREE OF FATNESS AND HOW THESE FACTORS INTERACT. THIS WILL POTENTIALLY ALLOW MORE PRECISE MANAGEMENT AND RESOURCE UTILIZATION IN BEEF ANIMALS TO ACHIEVE A CONSISTENT HIGH-QUALITY PRODUCT.