• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.157-163
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• 2005

An experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary betaine and protein levels on performance, internal e99 Qualify, blood composition, abdominal fat and liver amino acid concentration in laying hens. A total of 432 ISA-Brown laying hens were randomly allotted to four treatments with six replications for twenty few weeks. Treatments were factorially designed with two levels of crude protein(14.5 and $16.5\%$) and two levels of betaine(0 and 600ppm). The egg production was increased by feeding $16.5\%$ protein-fed group compared to that of $14.5\%$ protein-fed groups(P<0.05), but was different from betaine supplementation. Increasing protein and betaine supplementation to diets improved egg weight, egg mass and fred conversion(P<0.05). Eggshell breaking strength, thickness and Haugh unit were not influenced by either dietary betaine or protein levels. Dietary betaine did not affect serum total protein, albumin and uric acid concentration, whereas uric acid concentration was increased in $16.5\%$ protein-fed groups(P<0.05). The deposition of abdominal fat was lower in 600ppm betaine groups compared to those fed on 0ppm betaine groups(P<0.05). Concentration of the most hepatic amino acids were affected by dietary protein levels and betaine supplementation. There were synergistic effect between dietary protein and betaine. These results suggested that dietary betaine can improve the egg weight, mass, feed conversion and decrease the abdominal fat, but increase the hepatic amino acid contents.

• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.101-112
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• 2011

Objectives: The aim of this study is to determine arterial stiffness levels as measured by brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) and to identify the association between arterial stiffness and inflammatory markers, in healthy adults over 50 years old. Methods: The study population consisted of 4617 persons over the age of 50 years who participated in the baseline survey of the Dong-gu Study, which was conducted in 2007 and 2008. Arterial stiffness was measured using baPWV. A multiple regression analysis was performed to assess the relationship between conventional cardiovascular risk factors and inflammatory markers, including white blood cell (WBC) counts, high-sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), and gamma glutamyltransferase (GGT). Results: After adjustment for conventional cardiovascular risk factors including sex, age, smoking status, body mass index, systolic blood pressure, fasting glucose, hypertension or diabetic medication, total cholesterol, triglycerides, uric acid, and alanine aminotransferase, baPWV was significantly associated with WBC counts (${\beta}$=0.158, p<0.0001), hs-CRP (${\beta}$=0.244, p=0.026), and GGT (${\beta}$=0.003, p<0.0001). Conclusion: This study shows that arterial stiffness correlates with inflammatory markers. Arterial stiffness may be used as a composite risk factor to identify persons with higher risk for cardiovascular disease. Additionally, arterial stiffness may be a marker for future cardiovascular disease and a target for prevention.