• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
• /
• v.40 no.2
• /
• pp.97-103
• /
• 2013

The present study examined effects of production performance, immune activity and egg quality by raising on exercise yard in laying Hens, the results of which could be used as baseline data to enhance animal welfare and the safety of livestock products. A total of 90 Hy-line-Brown laying hens of 13 weeks old were used in the experiment for 38 weeks. The cage group (Cage group) was raised in a cage, where an area of $0.084m^2$ was assigned to two hens, while hens in the exercise yard $1.1m^2$ group ($1.1m^2$ group) was assigned to a combination of a chicken house ($0.11m^2$) and a exercise yard ($1.1m^2$) per a hen. Hens in the exercise yard $2.2m^2$ group ($2.2m^2$ group) was assigned to a combination of a chicken house ($0.11m^2$) and a exercise yard ($2.2m^2$) per a hen. Treatment was replicated 3 times with ten birds per replication. Ten birds were arranged according to randomized block design. While initial egg production rate was significantly higher in the Cage group, $1.1m^2$ group exhibited a slightly higher rate in the mid- and late-stage of the experiment, although the difference was not statistically significant. Exercise yard treatment groups exhibited a higher feed intake rate than the Cage group up until the hens were 39 weeks old (P<0.05), but the difference dissipated from that age on. The age at first egg in the exercise yard treatment groups was 16 days later than that for the Cage group (P<0.05), although differences in the quality of the eggs were not observed. The results of immune activity test showed that IgA in the exercise yard treatment groups was significantly higher than that in the Cage group (P<0.05). IgG, IgM, and corticosterone were also higher in the exercise yard treatment groups. The soil in exercise yard increased of organic matter and decreased of cation exchange capacity (CEC) in raised hens. In sum, raising hens in a exercise yard raise style decreased the rate of initial egg production, which was followed by a slight increase during the latter part of the experiment. The exercise yard raise hens' immune activity was heightened.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
• /
• v.33 no.4
• /
• pp.309-316
• /
• 2006

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary natural mineral liquid complex on egg production and characteristics in laying hens. A total of two hundreds fifty two, 63-weeks-old, Hy-line brown commercial layers were used for 6 weeks. Seven dietary treatments included CON (Control), C1-M0.25 (CON diet+1% chitosan+0.25% natural mineral complex), C1-M0.5 (CON diet+1% chitosan+0.50% natural mineral complex), C2-M0.25 (CON diet+2% chitosan+0.25% natural mineral complex), C2-M0.50 (CON diet+2% chitosan+0.50% natural mineral complex), C3-M0.25 (CON diet+ 3% chitosan+0.25% natural mineral complex) and C3-M0.50 (CON diet+3% chitosan+0.50% natural mineral complex). For overall period, egg production, egg shall breaking strength, haugh unit, K and Fe concentrations of blood and Fe concentration of yolk were improved in additive natural mineral treatments compared to control treatment(P<0.05). K and Fe concentrations of blood and Fe concentration of yolk were increased in added 0.5% mineral treatment compared to added 0.25% mineral treatment(P<0.05). Additive 3% chitosan + 0.5% mineral treatments were improved on egg Production and egg shall breaking strength in laying hens(P<0.05). In conclusion, chitosan and natural mineral complex supplementation in lay hens diet improved egg oduction, egg all strength and mineral concentrations of blood and yolk.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
• /
• v.41 no.4
• /
• pp.241-247
• /
• 2014

The objective of this experimental was to investigate the effect of dietary Cu-sulfate and Cu-soy proteinate on productive performance and small intestinal microflora. A total 1,000 Hy-Line Brown laying hens (35 weeks old) were randomly allotted to 1 of 5 dietary treatments: Control, Cu-sulfate 50, 100 (50, 100 ppm Cu supplementation as Cu-sulfate) and Cu-SP 50, 100 (50, 100 ppm Cu supplementation as Cu-soy proteinate). Each treatment was replicated 4 times with fifty birds per replication, housed in 2 birds cages. Fifty birds units were arranged according to randomized block design. Feeding trial lasted 5 weeks under 16L : 8D lighting regimen. Hen day egg production was significantly (P<0.05) higher in Cu treated groups than control. Feed intake, broken and shell-less egg production was not significantly influenced by treatment. Eggshell color, eggyolk color, haugh unit, and eggshell thickness were not significantly influenced by treatment. However, eggshell strength was significantly (P<0.05) greater in Cu treated groups than control. Concentration of copper of liver was significantly (P<0.05) greater in Cu treated groups than control. Concentration of zinc and iron of liver were not influenced by treatments. Population of Cl. perfrigens and Lactobacilli in the small intestinal content were significantly (P<0.05) influenced by treatments. Population of Cl. perfrigens decreased and that of Lactobacilli increased in the Cu supplement groups. In conclusion, dietary Cu sulfate and Cu-soy proteinate similarly improves egg production, eggshell strength, and favors intestinal microbial population of laying hens.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
• /
• v.41 no.2
• /
• pp.135-142
• /
• 2014

This study was conducted to evaluate dietary effects of Marigold extract on laying performance, egg quality, oxidative stability of egg yolk and lutein transfer into chicken eggs. A total of one-hundred eighty nine 55-wk-old Hy-Line Brown layers were divided into seven groups and fed control diet or each experimental diet containing 0.1, 0.3, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5 or 2.0% Marigold extract. Egg production, egg weight and daily egg mass were not affected by dietary treatments. The yolk colors in groups fed diets containing Marigold extract were significantly higher than that of control. The Haugh unit were tended to be improved by feeding of diets containing Marigold extract although there were no significant difference in egg shell strength and thickness. The MDA (malondialdehyde) contents in groups fed diets containing Marigold extract above 0.5% were significantly reduced than that of control. After 14d of storage, the Haugh unit values in groups feed diets containing 0.3 and 1.0% Marigold extract were significantly higher than that of control (p<0.05). The concentration of lutein in egg yolk increased by feeding of Marigold extract. When 2% Marigold extract was supplemented to the diet, lutein content of egg was increased as much as 1.71 mg/60 g. These results indicated that the use of Marigold extract in layer diets was effective in egg quality and for the production of lutein fortified eggs.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
• /
• v.52 no.5
• /
• pp.389-398
• /
• 2010

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of three strains of Bacillus subtilis (B. subtilis) supplemented to diets on egg production, egg quality, egg yolk cholesterol levels, the profile of cecal microflora, and tibia characteristics in laying hens. One hundred sixty 76-week-old Hy-Line Brown layers were randomly divided into 4 groups with 4 replicates per group (10 birds per replicate). Birds in the control group were fed a corn-soybean meal based diet. The remaining three treated groups were fed the control diet containing either 0.05% B. subtilis Ch3 (T1), 0.05% B. subtilis Ch3 + B. subtilis W1 (T2) or 0.05% B. subtilis commercial product (T3) for 6 weeks, respectively. There were no differences in feed intake, egg weight, egg production and egg mass among the groups. The dietary supplementation of B. subtilis improved eggshell strength and Haugh units compared to those of control (P<0.05). The activities of GOT and GPT in serum were not also affected by the dietary treatments. The population of total microbes and lactic acid bacteria in cecum were significantly increased by the dietary B. subtilis (P<0.05), but not the coliforms. The cholesterol concentration in egg yolk and serum in the treated groups were significantly decreased compared to those of control (P<0.05). Also, The levels of phospholipids in serum were significantly decreased compared to those of control (P<0.05). The supplementation of three strains of B. subtilis to diets significantly increased the contents of tibia ash compared to that of control (P<0.05). Thus, this study showed significant improvements in egg quality, such as eggshell strength and Haugh unit, by dietary B. subtilis strains. The B. subtilis strains added to the diets modulated the profiles of cecal microflora, reflecting beneficial effects in laying hens.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
• /
• v.49 no.6
• /
• pp.737-744
• /
• 2007

An experiment was conducted to compare the ME values of imported corns measured by In vivo(TME) and In vitro(MEn, ME and MEpc) methods and to investigate the true amino acid availability(TAAA) and the true nutrient availability(TNA) of imported corns. For TME assay, twenty four 57-weeks-old Hy-Line roosters were assigned to fasting group(4 roosters) and four corn groups(5 roosters each): USA; corn produced in the United States, ARG; corn produced in Argentina, CHN; regular corn produced in China, CHNP; premium corn produced in China. The MEn, ME and MEpc values were determined by equations based on chemical analysis. The TME value of USA(3,745kcal/kg) in as fed basis was significantly (P<0.01) higher than ARG(3,555kcal/kg) and CHNP(3,518kcal/kg) but was not significantly different from CHN(3,671kcal/kg). The TME value of USA(4,144kcal/kg) in DM basis was not significantly different from CHN(4,060kcal/kg) and CHNP(4,008kcal/kg) but was significantly(P<0.05) higher than ARG(4,001kcal/kg). There were significant differences in TAAA of phenylalanine, histidine and arginine among imported corns. Those of USA were highest but overall TAAA was not significantly different among imported corns. True availability of NFE of USA, ARG and CHN was significantly(P<0.05) higher than that of CHNP. However, true availability of crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber and crude ash were not significantly different among corns. The correlation coefficient between TME and MEn value was 0.91 which was significant at P<0.1 but correlation coefficient between TME and ME value and between TME and MEpc value was 0.90 and 0.83, respectively which was not significant at P<0.1. In conclusion, US corn was highest in TME values and Chinese premium corn was not significantly different from regular Chinese corn. The MEn value obtained by equation based on chemical analysis may be used as a tool to evaluate TME value of corn.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
• /
• v.49 no.4
• /
• pp.189-197
• /
• 2022

This study was conducted to compare the egg productivity, egg quality, and blood characteristics of laying hens with different laying rates, and the frequency and cumulative duration of the sitting behavior observed before laying was investigated. Twelve 45-week-old Hy-Line Brown laying hens were randomly assigned to two treatment groups with three replicates. Treatment groups were classified as layers laying over 80%(high egg performance layers; HEP) and layers laying below 50%(poor egg performance layers; PEP). The experiment lasted 4 weeks. HEP showed higher hen-house egg production ratio and egg mass and lower feed conversion ratio(FCR) (P<0.05) compared with PEP, although egg weight was higher in PEP (P<0.05). In terms of egg quality, PEP showed differences in eggshell quality (eggshell color, eggshell thickness, and eggshell weight) (P<0.05). Additionally, HEP showed high triglycerides(TG), and PEP showed high alanine transaminase(ALT) level (P<0.05) in serum collected in the morning. In the afternoon, the HEP showed higher lactate dehydrogenase(LDH) levels (P<0.05). No differences in the Ca: P ratio were observed between layers with different laying rates. One hour before egg laying, HEP exhibited sitting behavior 4 times on average, each lasting 25 minutes. In conclusion, egg production and quality differ between HEP and PEP, and HEP showed frequent sitting behavior before egg laying. However, additional research is necessary to explore approaches other than specific behavioral observation to distinguish poor layers in the flock for application in farms.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
• /
• v.39 no.2
• /
• pp.87-95
• /
• 2012

This experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of varying levels of metabolizable energy (ME) and crude protein (CP) on growth performance and carcass characteristics in layer-type growing male chicks. Nine hundred 1-d-old Hy-Line Brown male chicks were randomly allocated to 30 pens in a $2{\times}3$ factorial design. The experimental diets contained 2 levels of ME (2,800 kcal/kg and 2,950 kcal/kg) in combination with 3 levels of CP (17%, 18.5%, and, 20%). A significant interaction of ME and CP on feed intake was observed (p<0.05). No interaction was observed between ME and CP for 53 d BW gain or FCR, which improved linearly with dietary CP levels (p<0.05). A significant interaction or tendency was observed between ME and CP levels. The intake of ME for 1 g BW gain was linearly decreased with increasing CP levels (p<0.001). The intake of CP per bird was significantly increased in low ME (2,800 kcal/kg) treatment than that of the high ME treatment (2,950 kcal/kg) (p<0.05), and dietary CP level had more influence on CP intake for gram BW gain than level of ME. The relative weights of liver, spleen, breast meat and, leg were not influenced by the dietary treatments. Serum BUN, albumin, creatinine, and the activities of GOT and GPT were not influenced significantly by the diet treatment. In conclusion, the growth performance in layer-type male chicks was linearly increased when the level of dietary CP increased. The ME and CP did not affect the carcass characteristics and blood profiles. Therefore, the optimum levels of dietary ME and CP to improve the growth were 2,800 kcal/kg and above 18.5% in layer-type growing male chicks, respectively.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
• /
• v.42 no.3
• /
• pp.397-402
• /
• 2013

The pharmacological efficacy of Protaetia (P.) brevitarsis larvae has been described in the Dongui Bogam. It is believed that the larvae are particularly useful for hepatic disorders. However, natural aversion has made it difficult to consume these larvae as food. Thus, we sought to make an eatable form of the larvae by establishing optimal conditions for larvae preparation. Larvae were selectively bred, sterilized, and a powder of larvae generated by freeze-drying. Afterward, the CellTiter $96^{(R)}$ AQueous Non-Radioactive Cell Proliferation Assay (MTS) with the RAW 264.7 cell line was used to validate the safety of the powder as a food ingredient. We determined that oak sawdust sterilized by water vapor for 5 minutes could be used for larvae feed, and a feeding for 3~5 days followed by a fasting for 3 days were optimal conditions for larvae preparation. In addition, sterilization of larvae at $115^{\circ}C$ and $0.9kgf/cm^3$ (to avoid contamination of pathogenic bacteria and fungi) was successfully applied in the production of edible powder from P. brevitarsis. The optimized processes established in our experiments can be used in the industrial production of P. brevitarsis as a food ingredient.