Arthrospira Platensis (Spirulina) Supplementation on Laying Hens’ Performance: Eggs Physical, Chemical, and Sensorial Qualities

The present study evaluated the effects of dietary supplementation of spirulina on laying hens’ performances: Eggs’ physical, chemical, and sensorial qualities. A total of 45 Lohman White hens, 44 weeks of age, were randomized into 3 groups of 15 birds. Hens were given 120 g/d of a basal diet containing 0% (control), 1.5%, and 2.5% of spirulina for 6 weeks. Albumen height and consequently Haugh unit were significantly affected by dietary supplementation of spirulina (p < 0.05) and by weeks on diet (p < 0.05). This supplement did not affect (p > 0.05) egg yolk weight or height. However, spirulina increased egg yolk redness (a*) from 1.33 (C) to 12.67 (D1) and 16.19 (D2) and reduced (p < 0.05) the yellowness (b*) parameter from 62.1(C) to 58.17 (D1) and 55.87 (D2). Egg yolks from hens fed spirulina were darker, more red, and less yellow in color than egg yolks from hens fed the control-diet (p < 0.0001). However, spirulina did not affect (p > 0.05) egg yolks’ total cholesterol concentration. In conclusion, a significant enhancement of egg yolk color was found in response to spirulina supplementation. Further investigations are needed to evaluate the impact of spirulina on egg yolks’ fatty acids profile.

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Dietary supplementation with sodium humate improves egg quality and immune function of laying hens

Journal of Applied Animal Nutrition ◽

10.3920/jaan2020.0009 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 93-99

Author(s):

A.R. Zhang ◽

S.A. Pirzado ◽

G.H. Liu ◽

Z.M. Chen ◽

W.H. Chang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Egg Production ◽

Laying Hens ◽

Egg Quality ◽

Control Diet ◽

Dietary Supplementation ◽

Basal Diet ◽

Egg Yolk ◽

Shell Quality ◽

Sodium Humate ◽

Antioxidant Parameters

The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of the dietary addition of sodium humate (HAS) on performance and immune response of laying hens during peak lay, over an eight-week period. Laying hens, aged 24 weeks old, were randomly allotted to four dietary treatments: a basal control diet or the basal diet supplemented with 0.1, 0.3 or 0.5% HAS. Each treatment had six replicates with 15 layers per replicate. Egg production, egg quality, serum antioxidant parameters and immunity indexes were measured. HAS had no significant effect on egg production or egg and shell quality, but all supplemental levels significantly improved Haugh unit values and egg yolk colour. Supplementation with all levels of HAS significantly increased serum immunoglobuline (Ig) level compared to the hens fed the control diet. Feeding either 0.1 or 0.5% HAS significantly increased serum IgM levels. The results indicated that dietary supplementation with HAS can enhance egg albumin quality and improve immunity in laying hens.

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Effect of Dietary Supplementation of Fermented Pine Needle Extract on Productive Performance, Egg Quality, and Serum Lipid Parameters in Laying Hens

Animals ◽

10.3390/ani11051475 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (5) ◽

pp. 1475

Author(s):

Damini Kothari ◽

Jong-Seok Oh ◽

Ju-Hee Kim ◽

Woo-Do Lee ◽

Soo-Ki Kim

Keyword(s):

Serum Lipid ◽

Egg Production ◽

Laying Hens ◽

Egg Quality ◽

Dietary Supplementation ◽

Basal Diet ◽

Egg Yolk ◽

Egg Mass ◽

Productive Performance ◽

Laying Performance

This study aimed to investigate the supplemental effects of fermented pine (Pinus densiflora) needle extract (FPNE) in laying hen diets on productive performance, egg quality, and serum lipid metabolites. A total of 108 40-week-old Hy-line brown laying hens were randomly assigned to one of the three dietary treatment groups: (1) basal diet + 0 mL FPNE/kg diet (CON), (2) basal diet + 2.5 mL FPNE/kg diet (T1), or (3) basal diet + 5 mL FPNE/kg diet (T2) for 6 weeks. Each group consisted of four replicates of nine hens each. Feed and water provided ad libitum. Results showed that dietary supplementation of FPNE increased egg production percentage (linear, p < 0.01 and quadratic, p < 0.05), egg mass (linear, p < 0.05), and feed intake (linear, p < 0.05) during the entire experimental period. In addition, dietary inclusion of FPNE significantly increased the eggshell color (linear, p < 0.01), egg yolk color (quadratic, p < 0.01), and eggshell breaking strength (linear, p < 0.05 and quadratic, p < 0.05) while the Haugh unit decreased (quadratic, p < 0.05). However, serum lipid profile did not differ among the dietary treatments (p > 0.05). Notably, antioxidant activity of egg yolk was improved by significantly decreasing the malondialdehyde content in egg yolks after 6 weeks of storage (linear, p < 0.001 and quadratic, p < 0.05). In summary, dietary inclusion of FPNE could improve laying performance and the antioxidant capacity of eggs.

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Retention of carotenoids in egg yolks of laying hens supplemented with heterotrophic Chlorella

Czech Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.17221/6747-cjas ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 58 (No. 5) ◽

pp. 193-200 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

V. Kotrbáček ◽

M. Skřivan ◽

J. Kopecký ◽

O. Pěnkava ◽

P. Hudečková ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Feed Intake ◽

Laying Hens ◽

Plasma Concentrations ◽

Basal Diet ◽

Egg Yolk ◽

Feed Consumption ◽

Yolk Mass ◽

Total Carotenoids ◽

Feed Supplementation ◽

Egg Yolks

The present study investigated the effect of 1 and 2% feed supplementation with biomass of Chlorella grown through heterotrophic fermentation on the concentration of total and individual carotenoids in egg yolks. A total of twenty-four Hisex Brown laying hens aged 56 weeks were included in the experiment. The layers were kept individually in cages. They were divided into three groups of eight birds and fed a diet typical for laying hens. Control birds (C) received only a basal diet, while experimental diets (P1 and P2) were supplemented with 1 and 2% (i.e. 10 and 20 g/kg) dry disintegrated Chlorella biomass. Egg yolk deposition of total carotenoids was significantly (P < 0.01) increased by 46% (P1) and 119% (P2). The rising curves of total carotenoids reached their plateau during the fourth experimental week. The respective values oscillated around 25 mg (P1) and 40 mg (P2) per g of yolk during the following weeks. Lutein and zeaxanthin were equally deposited and they represented more than 90% of total carotenoids in yolk. The deposition of carotenoids significantly (P < 0.01) increased the colour characteristics of yolks measured using the Roche Yolk Colour Fan scale. Supplementation with Chlorella biomass significantly decreased the egg yolk weight of P2 in comparison with P1 (P < 0.05) and C (P < 0.01). These effects were probably related to lower feed consumption in these hens. The daily feed intake per hen, as well as its consumption per egg, was lower by 5–7 g in both supplemented groups. Recalculation of the diet consumption per kg of egg and yolk mass eliminated these differences. There were no differences among laying hens in plasma concentrations of triacylglycerol and cholesterol.

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Effect of Natural and Chemical Colorant Supplementation on Performance, Egg-Quality Characteristics, Yolk Fatty-Acid Profile, and Blood Constituents in Laying Hens

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13084503 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (8) ◽

pp. 4503

Author(s):

Ahmed A. Saleh ◽

Esraa Gawish ◽

Samy F. Mahmoud ◽

Khairy Amber ◽

Wael Awad ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fatty Acid ◽

Fatty Acid Profile ◽

Laying Hens ◽

Egg Quality ◽

Control Diet ◽

Egg Yolk ◽

Quality Characteristics ◽

Feed Additives ◽

Blood Constituents ◽

Egg Yolks

Natural and chemical colorants are attracting a lot of attention as sustainable feed additives due to their effect on food color and because presentation matters to consumers. Color also is a major sensory factor that helps consumers determine food quality and its possible health benefits. For example, highly colored egg yolks can only come from healthy laying hens fed a well-balanced, nutrient-rich diet. Consumers associate an intense yolk color with healthy, nutrient-rich food. There is a growing market request for eggs with rich yolk coloring. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the impact of natural (paprika) and chemical (carmoisine) colorant supplementation on the performance, egg-quality characteristics, yolk fatty-acid profile, and blood constituents in laying hens. A total of 240 Bovans laying hens were randomly distributed in a completely randomized design in four treatments according to four experimental diets: a control diet (without supplementation of any colorants), a control diet supplemented with 4 kg/ton paprika, a control diet supplemented with 150 g carmoisine/ton, and a control diet supplemented with a combination of 4 kg/ton paprika plus 150 g carmoisine/ton, fed from 42 to 54 weeks of age. Each treatment consisted of 10 replications with six hens. Dietary inclusion of paprika colorant improved (p < 0.05) the feed-conversion ratio and egg-production rate, while final body weight, weight change, feed intake, and egg weight and mass were not affected. The degrees of egg yolk and white were increased (p < 0.05) by the dietary supplements. Yolk color and shell thickness were enhanced (p < 0.05) by adding paprika and/or carmoisine colorants. Supplementation of the paprika colorant alone or in combination with carmoisine increased (p < 0.05) linolenic acid, oleic acid, and vitamin E concentrations in egg yolks. In contrast, egg yolk palmitic acid and liver malondialdehyde contents were decreased (p < 0.05). Paprika and carmoisine colorants and their combination improved (p < 0.05) blood lipid profile in treated hens. We concluded that the dietary supplementation of natural (paprika) colorants has an influential role in improving egg yolk color, production performance, and egg yolk fatty-acid profile in laying hens.

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Cholesterol Content, Fatty Acid Profile and Health Lipid Indices in the Egg Yolk of Eggs from Hens at the End of the Laying Cycle, Following Alpha-Ketoglutarate Supplementation

Foods ◽

10.3390/foods10030596 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (3) ◽

pp. 596

Author(s):

Ewa Tomaszewska ◽

Siemowit Muszyński ◽

Anna Arczewska-Włosek ◽

Piotr Domaradzki ◽

Renata Pyz-Łukasik ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fatty Acid ◽

Laying Hens ◽

Basal Diet ◽

Egg Yolk ◽

Cholesterol Content ◽

Control Group ◽

Production Cycle ◽

Cont Group ◽

Egg Yolks ◽

Total Fat

The current study aimed to assess the effects of dietary alpha-ketoglutarate (AKG) supplementation to laying hens on the fatty acid (FA) profile and cholesterol levels of the egg yolk at the end of production cycle. The experiment was performed on forty-eight Bovans Brown laying hens randomly assigned to either a control group (CONT) or a group supplemented with AKG. The CONT group was fed the basal diet, and the AKG group was fed the basal diet plus 1.0% AKG from the 31st until the 60th week of age, when FA profile, fat and cholesterol content of the egg yolks were determined. No significant changes in the cholesterol and total fat content of the egg yolks were observed. However, there were positive (the decrease in n-6 FA and the increase in MUFA), and negative (decrease in PUFA and n-3 FA, increase in TI and n-6/n-3 ratio) changes in FA profile following AKG supplementation. In conclusion, it was shown that dietary AKG after a 30-week long supplementation influence FA profile in egg yolk and its nutritional value.

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Effects of Dietary Supplementation of Salvia officinalis L. in Organic Laying Hens on Egg Quality, Yolk Oxidative Stability and Eggshell Microbiological Counts

Animals ◽

10.3390/ani11092502 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (9) ◽

pp. 2502

Author(s):

Dimitrios Galamatis ◽

Georgios A. Papadopoulos ◽

Diamanto Lazari ◽

Dimitrios Fletouris ◽

Evanthia Petridou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Laying Hens ◽

Egg Quality ◽

Control Diet ◽

Dietary Supplementation ◽

Salvia Officinalis ◽

Organic Systems ◽

Egg Yolks ◽

Poultry Diets ◽

Salvia Officinalis L ◽

Antimicrobial And Antioxidant Activity

Aromatic plants of Labiatae family are used in poultry diets because of their antimicrobial and antioxidant activity. The notion is that hens raised in organic systems face several health and environmental challenges. Hence, the objective here was to assess hens’ performances and the quality of their eggs in such systems following a dietary supplementation of Salvia officinalis L. in powder form. The experiments were conducted over two successive years (1 and 2). They lasted 16 weeks each and involved 198 laying hens aged 40 weeks old randomly assigned to three groups: Con (control diet), Sal-0.5%, and Sal-1.0% (diets supplemented with Salvia officinalis L. at 0.5% or 1.0%, respectively). The malondialdehyde (MDA) levels in egg yolks in year 2 were lower in both Sal-0.5% and Sal-1.0% compared to the Con (p < 0.05). The total number of Enterobacteriaceae in eggshells were lower in Sal-1.0% compared to the Con (p < 0.05) in both years. The results suggest that a dietary supplementation of Salvia officinalis L. at 1.0% improves the antioxidant status and reduces the microbial load of eggs produced in organic systems.

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CANOLA MEAL FOR LAYING HENS

Canadian Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.4141/cjas85-106 ◽

1985 ◽

Vol 65 (4) ◽

pp. 905-911 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

JOHN D. SUMMERS ◽

E. C. HUNT ◽

S. LEESON

Keyword(s):

Soybean Meal ◽

Egg Size ◽

Laying Hens ◽

Energy Content ◽

Control Diet ◽

Basal Diet ◽

Egg Yolk ◽

Canola Meal ◽

Meal Protein ◽

Dietary Treatments

Laying hens were fed a corn, barley, soybean meal control diet and similar diets in which 10% of canola meal replaced an equal amount of soybean meal protein. One of the canola diets was kept equal in energy to the control diet by the addition of extra dietary fat, while the energy content was allowed to fall for an alternate treatment. While there were slight differences in performance, the main effect noted was a reduction in egg size for birds fed the canola diets. Fatty acid composition of egg yolk, liver and abdominal fat did not differ significantly between the three dietary treatments. In a second trial 10% canola meal was substituted on an isocaloric basis, into a corn-soybean meal basal diet. Over a 48-wk laying period, birds fed canola meal consumed less feed than those fed the soybean meal control which resulted in fewer eggs and also smaller egg size (P < 0.05). Key words: Laying hens, canola meal, egg composition

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Modulation of Gut Microbiota and Oxidative Status by β-Carotene in Late Pregnant Sows

Frontiers in Nutrition ◽

10.3389/fnut.2020.612875 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 7 ◽

Author(s):

Xupeng Yuan ◽

Jiahao Yan ◽

Ruizhi Hu ◽

Yanli Li ◽

Ying Wang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gut Microbiota ◽

Dietary Supplementation ◽

Basal Diet ◽

Fecal Microbiota ◽

Control Group ◽

Metabolic Activities ◽

The Impact ◽

Positive Effect ◽

Β Carotene

Recent evidences suggest that gut microbiota plays an important role in regulating physiological and metabolic activities of pregnant sows, and β-carotene has a potentially positive effect on reproduction, but the impact of β-carotene on gut microbiota in pregnant sows remains unknown. This study aimed to explore the effect and mechanisms of β-carotene on the reproductive performance of sows from the aspect of gut microbiota. A total of 48 hybrid pregnant sows (Landrace × Yorkshire) with similar parity were randomly allocated into three groups (n = 16) and fed with a basal diet or a diet containing 30 or 90 mg/kg of β-carotene from day 90 of gestation until parturition. Dietary supplementation of 30 or 90 mg/kg β-carotene increased the number of live birth to 11.82 ± 1.54 and 12.29 ± 2.09, respectively, while the control group was 11.00 ± 1.41 (P = 0.201). Moreover, β-carotene increased significantly the serum nitric oxide (NO) level and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity (P < 0.05). Characterization of fecal microbiota revealed that 90 mg/kg β-carotene increased the diversity of the gut flora (P < 0.05). In particular, β-carotene decreased the relative abundance of Firmicutes including Lachnospiraceae AC2044 group, Lachnospiraceae NK4B4 group and Ruminococcaceae UCG-008, but enriched Proteobacteria including Bilophila and Sutterella, and Actinobacteria including Corynebacterium and Corynebacterium 1 which are related to NO synthesis. These data demonstrated that dietary supplementation of β-carotene may increase antioxidant enzyme activity and NO, an important vasodilator to promote the neonatal blood circulation, through regulating gut microbiota in sows.

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PSVIII-2 Antibody yield for polyclonal egg yolk antibody (IgY) production in laying hens

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skaa278.455 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 98 (Supplement_4) ◽

pp. 252-253

Author(s):

Cherrie Nolden ◽

Abbey Grisham ◽

Dan Schaefer ◽

Matt Akins ◽

Mark Cook

Keyword(s):

Repeated Measures ◽

Laying Hens ◽

Egg Yolk ◽

Interleukin 10 ◽

Cpg Odn ◽

Slow Decline ◽

Egg Yolks ◽

Egg Yolk Antibody ◽

To Receive ◽

Phosphate Buffered Saline

Abstract Antibody production in egg yolks of immunized laying hens is an alternative to conventional mammalian production. Antibody yield peak and duration have not been described for immunoglobulin Y technology using Freund’s incomplete adjuvant (FIA) and C-phosphate-guanosine oligodeoxynucleotides (CpG-ODN) without the inclusion of Freund’s complete adjuvant for enhancing the immune response to an interleukin-10 (IL-10) peptide. This study sought to describe the antibody titer production for an 8 amino acid sequence from the surface of the bovine IL-10 protein (VMPQAENG) as the antigen emulsified with CpG-ODN and FIA in phosphate buffered saline (PBS). 60 hens were assigned to receive the complete vaccine (Peptide), 20 received the vaccine without the IL-10 peptide (Control), and 8 received a PBS injection (Blank). Hens were immunized with 0.25 mL in 4 locations, each breast and each thigh on days 1, 15 and 29. The complete vaccine delivered 0.6 mg IL-10 peptide, 8 µg CpG-ODN, and 0.33 mL FIA per hen on each vaccination day. Eggs were collected regularly until 175 days after the first immunization and the anti IL-10 peptide activities of the yolk were determined by ELISA. Egg titers by treatment were analyzed with a repeated measures ANOVA in SAS. The supplementation of FIA with CpG-ODN produced high titers, of over 100 µg of antibody per mL of yolk (µg Ab/mL yolk), around day 33 through day 76, with a slow decline through day 175 when average titers remained above 40 µg Ab/mL yolk. Peptide egg titers were significantly higher than Blank or Control titers from day 31 though day 175 (P < 0.0001). Titers recovered from Marcq et al. (2015) with similar methods were 1.5 to 7 times lower than these results over the same number of days.

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Mitigation Effects of Bentonite and Yeast Cell Wall Binders on AFB1, DON, and OTA Induced Changes in Laying Hen Performance, Egg Quality, and Health

Toxins ◽

10.3390/toxins13020156 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (2) ◽

pp. 156

Author(s):

Ling Zhao ◽

Yue Feng ◽

Jing-Tao Wei ◽

Meng-Xiang Zhu ◽

Lei Zhang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Laying Hens ◽

Egg Quality ◽

Dietary Supplementation ◽

Basal Diet ◽

Liver Weight ◽

Laying Hen ◽

Egg Laying ◽

Villus Height ◽

Crypt Depth ◽

Induced Changes

The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of mycotoxin binders in reducing the adverse effects of co-occurring dietary aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), deoxynivalenol (DON) and ochratoxin A (OTA) on laying hens. Three hundred and sixty 26-week-old Roman laying hens were randomly allocated into four experimental groups with 10 replicates of nine birds each. The four groups received either a basal diet (BD; Control), a BD supplemented with 0.15 mg/kg AFB1 + 1.5 mg/kg DON + 0.12 mg/kg OTA (Toxins), a BD + Toxins with Toxo-HP binder (Toxins + HP), or a BD + Toxins with TOXO XL binder (Toxins + XL) for 12 weeks. Compared to the control, dietary supplementation of mycotoxins decreased (P < 0.10) total feed intake, total egg weight, and egg-laying rate, but increased feed/egg ratio by 2.5–6.1% and mortality during various experimental periods. These alterations induced by mycotoxins were alleviated by supplementation with both TOXO HP and XL binders (P < 0.10). Furthermore, dietary mycotoxins reduced (P < 0.05) eggshell strength by 12.3% and caused an accumulation of 249 μg/kg of DON in eggs at week 12, while dietary supplementation with TOXO HP or XL mitigated DON-induced changes on eggshell strength and prevented accumulation of DON in eggs (P < 0.05). Moreover, dietary mycotoxins increased relative liver weight, but decreased spleen and proventriculus relative weights by 11.6–22.4% (P < 0.05). Mycotoxin exposure also increased alanine aminotransferase activity and reduced immunoglobulin (Ig) A, IgM, and IgG concentrations in serum by 9.2–26.1% (P < 0.05). Additionally, mycotoxin exposure induced histopathological damage and reduced villus height, villus height/crypt depth, and crypt depth in duodenum, jejunum and (or) ileum (P < 0.05). Notably, most of these histological changes were mitigated by supplementation with both TOXO HP and XL (P < 0.05). In conclusion, the present study demonstrated that the mycotoxin binders TOXO HP and XL can help to mitigate the combined effects of AFB1, DON, and OTA on laying hen performance, egg quality, and health.

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