• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.26 no.7
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• pp.869-874
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• 2017

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation of various types of fermented red ginseng marc with red koji to laying hens on eggshell and egg yolk quality characteristics. A total of 240 Hy-line Brown laying hens (40 wk of age) were randomly allotted to 24 pens (6 replicates per treatment and 10 laying hens per replicate). Experimental diets consisted of 4 treatments containing basal diet (control), 1% fermented red ginseng marc powder with red koji, 1% fermented red ginseng marc pelleted with red koji and 1% fermented red ginseng marc coated with red koji. During the 8-wk feeding trial, there were no significant differences in eggshell strength, eggshell thickness and eggshell color among the treatments, except for eggshell strength at 4 and 8 wk and eggshell thickness at 0 wk. In addition, no differences in egg yolk color and egg yolk index were found for all treatments throughout the 8-wk feeding period, except for egg yolk color at 0 wk. Thus, using various types of fermented red ginseng marc with red koji to laying hens did not improve eggshell and egg yolk quality characteristics.

• Proceedings of the Korea Society of Poultry Science Conference
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• 2004.11a
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• pp.53-68
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• 2004

Eggshell quality is one of the most important factors that influence hatchability. The porosity and overall quality of eggshell have a very significant effect on exchange of vital gas (carbon dioxide and oxygen) between the developing embryo and the air during incubation. Thin-shelled eggs showed the greater weight loss than do thick-shelled eggs. causing the chick to have difficulty in hatching. Thin-shelled eggs also have a much greater chance of being cracked during handling. On the other hand. thick-shelled eggs showed the higher hatchability as a result of greater fertility and lower intermediate and late embryonic mortalities. Even a small percentage improvement in the eggshell quality could result in significant saving to the breeder industry in an increasingly competitive environment. Many factors including nutrition. management practices, environmental conditions and breeding are known to be related to eggshell quality. In this review brief accounts of each factor associated with eggshell quality and hatchability were provided. We conducted three experiments to investigate the effects of dietary Ca. vitamin D3 metabolite and some bioactive materials on eggshell quality and hatching egg production. The results of our studies showed that relatively high levels of dietary Ca in combination with 25-hydroxycholecalciferol had beneficial effects on improving eggshell quality and reproductive performances in aged egg-type breeder hens. It was also suggested that the proper use of some feed additives such as isoflavon and chitosan might provide means of improving eggshell quality and reproductive performances in aged egg-type breeder hens.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.159-162
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• 2019

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of dietary microbial-fermented molasses on egg production and egg quality in laying hens.In total, 90 Hy-line Brown laying hens were divided into two treatment groups (control and 1% microbial-fermented molasses)with three replicates of 15 birds each. During the experimental period, supplementation of hen diets with 1% microbial-fermented molassesdid not influence egg weight, hen-day egg production, egg mass, and feed conversion ratio (p > 0.05), except for feed intake. Regarding egg quality, diets containing 1% microbial-fermented molasses significantly affected eggshell thickness, Haugh unit, and albumen height (p < 0.05). However, there were no remarkable differences between control and 1% microbial-fermented molasses in eggshell color and egg yolk color (p > 0.05). These results indicate that supplementing 1% microbial-fermented molasses to the diet of laying hens improved egg quality parameters such as eggshell thickness, Haugh unit, and albumen height rather than egg production.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Service
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.225-234
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• 2005

Egg has been considered as one of the most important food sources in both nutritionally and economically. However, because the hazards of egg flow chains' complexity from producers to consumers and the insufficiency of cold chain systems in Korea are still remained, preventive measures for egg safety should be established. This experiment was carried out to investigate the changes of egg qualify during storage in order to find out the proper storage condition and eggshell treatment. Eggs were stored at cold condition $(5^{\circ}C,\;relative\;humidity;\;RH:\;65\pm3\%)$ and room Condition $(1st: Sep\; 6\~Nov\; 15,\;2001,\; 10\~30^{\circ}C,\;RH\;41\~86\%,\;2nd;\; Dec\;13,\;2001\~Feb\;21,\;2002,\;4\~23^{\circ}C,\;RH\;36\~89\%)$ after eggshell treatment (unwashed, washed and coated egg) during'10 weeks and examined weight loss and interior quality periodically. Weight loss was in decreasing order room washed > room unwashed > cold washed > cold unwashed > room coated > cold coated egg. And, Haugh unit was decreasing order room washed > room unwashed > room coated > cold washed > cold unwashed > cold coated egg. Our findings show that both coated eggs and refrigeration reduces the rate of decline in Haugh units and egg weight. And, washed eggs had lower average Haugh units and a higher weight loss than any of the eggshell treatment in both storage conditions. Conclusively, for washing eggshell, 150 ppm of sodium hypochlorite, regular exchange and temperature control of water should be consistent and also eggs should be dried immediately after washing. Also, national guidelines for temperature and moisture of storage places, transportation and expiration data should be established to keep quality and weight loss of eggs. Storage temperature that is a critical factor in the quality and safety of eggs should be kept under 12'c and labelling of expiration date should be obligatory.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.53-60
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• 2022

This study investigated correlations between egg quality indicators to identify external egg quality traits to predict internal egg quality using non-destructive and convenient measurements. Thirteen indicators, including Haugh unit, albumen height, eggshell breaking strength, eggshell thickness, eggshell color (CIE L^*, CIE a^*, CIE b^*), and reflectivity value, egg weight, egg length, egg width, shape index, and yolk color, were investigated. A total of 180 brown eggs were obtained from one 27-week-old flock of Hy-line brown-laying hens raised in a cage system. Correlations were evaluated using Pearson's correlation coefficient (r). The results showed strong correlations between Haugh unit and albumen height, eggshell color CIE L^* and reflectivity, egg weight and width, egg weight and length, eggshell color CIE L^* and CIE a^*, eggshell color CIE a^* and reflectivity, and shape index and egg length (P<0.001). Moderate correlations were observed between eggshell breaking strength and eggshell thickness, eggshell color CIE a^* and CIE b^*, and shape index and egg width (P<0.001). Eggshell color CIE L^* was correlated with eggshell breaking strength (P<0.01), and eggshell color CIE a^* was correlated with Haugh unit, albumen height (P<0.01), and eggshell breaking strength (P<0.001). The present study showed significant correlations between eggshell color and other quality indicators. Thus, this study suggests that eggshell colors based on reflectiveness and the CIE L^*a^*b^* value can be used to estimate the Haugh unit, albumen height, eggshell breaking strength, and thickness.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.23 no.8
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• pp.1043-1048
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• 2010

This study investigated the effects of Fe-soy proteinate (Fe-SP) and magnesium oxide (MgO) dietary supplements on eggshell quality in laying hens. A total of 800 26-wk-old Hy-Line Brown hens were assigned to four dietary treatments: control (C), Fe-SP 100 (100 ppm Fe-soy proteinate), MgO (3 g MgO/kg diet), and Fe-SP 100+MgO. Each treatment had five replicates of 40 hens. The FT-IR (Fourier transform infrared) and XRD (X-ray diffraction) spectra of Fe-soy proteinate were different from those of $FeSO_4$ and soy digest. There were no significant differences among treatments in hen-day egg production, hen-house egg production, broken and soft egg rate, feed intake, or feed conversion. The MgO and Fe-SP 100+MgO treatments showed significantly (p<0.05) higher egg weights than the control group. Eggshell strength and thickness were significantly (p<0.05) higher in the MgO supplemented groups. The lightness and yellowness of the eggshells decreased, and the redness increased significantly in the Fe-SP treated groups. There were no significant differences among treatments in leukocyte level, but hemoglobin (Hb) concentrations were higher with Fe-SP treatments. In conclusion, supplementation with Fe-SP significantly affects eggshell color and hemoglobin concentration, whereas MgO supplementation increases eggshell strength and thickness. Egg weight and egg shell quality can be improved by supplementation of 100 ppm Fe in the form of Fe-SP and 3 g MgO/kg diet.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.9 no.6
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• pp.723-726
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• 1996

A water loaded pressure device using water as the breaking force was developed to evaluate eggshell strength and compared with a dropping ball techniques. Further, relationships of shell thickness and weight of eggs to shell strength were also studied. Values for both of the shell strength measuring methods showed a highly significant correlation (p < 0.001) with shell thickness. The water loaded pressure method had a much higher simple correlation coefficient for shell thickness (r = + 0.786) than the dropping ball method (r = + 0.577). The shell strength measured by the water loaded pressure method appeared not to be correlated to egg weight. On the other hand, the negative sign of the standard partial regression coefficient and the partial regression coefficient of egg weight in the estimated multiple regression equation implied that for a given shell thickness a larger egg tended to have less shell strength than a smaller egg.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.23 no.7
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• pp.946-951
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• 2010

The objective of this research was to evaluate the effects of dietary supplementation of blood meal (BM) as a source of histidine, and magnesium oxide (MgO) as a catalyst of carnosine synthetase, on carnosine (L-Car) content in the chicken breast muscle (CBM), laying performance, and egg quality of spent old hens. Four hundred eighty laying hens (Hy-Line$^{(R)}$ Brown), 95wk old, were allotted randomly into five replicates of six dietary treatments: T1; 100% basal diet, T2; 100% basal diet+MgO, T3; 97.5% basal diet+2.5% BM, T4; 97.5% basal diet+2.5% BM+MgO, T5; 95% basal diet+5% BM, T6; 95% basal diet+5% BM+MgO. Magnesium oxide was added at 0.3% of diets. The layers were fed experimental diets for 5wk. There were no significant differences in the weekly L-Car content in CBM among all treatments during the total experimental period, but some of the contrast comparisions showed higher L-Car in CBM of T6. The L-Car contents linearly decreased (p<0.01 or p<0.05) as the layers got older except in T4 (p>0.05). There were significant differences in egg weight (p<0.01) and soft and broken egg ratio (p<0.05). The control (T1) was highest in egg weight and T6 was lowest in soft and broken egg ratio. Among the parameters of egg quality, there were significant differences in eggshell strength (p<0.01) and egg yolk color (p<0.05). Magnesium oxide supplementation increased the eggshell strength and BM tended to decrease egg yolk color. Eggshell color, eggshell thickness, and Haugh unit were not influenced by BM and MgO. In conclusion, BM and MgO did not significantly influence the L-Car in CBM of spent layers. The L-Car content rapidly decreased as the layers became senescent. Eggshell strength was increased by MgO supplementation.

• Journal of Mushroom
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.254-257
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• 2022

Owing to its excellent nutritional value, eggs are among the most important components of the human diet. Gender and environmental factors, such as feed composition, may alter the nutritional profile and quality of eggs. Feed additives have recently been used to enhance the health and productivity of hens, which has resulted in the production of higher-quality eggs. The fungus Cordyceps militaris, a well-established source of traditional medicines, contains potential bioactive metabolites, which prompted us to examine the effects of C. militaris-supplemented diets on the quality of hens' eggs. The hens of two species (Gallus gallus domesticus and Araucana) were fed with one of three different diets: a control diet and diets supplemented with 2% or 5% of C. militaris. Egg quality was determined by measuring the Haugh Unit, yolk color, and shell thickness. In addition, egg and shell densities together with the ratio of yolk to albumen were calculated. Eggshell thickness and yolk color were both enhanced by the addition of C. militaris, whereas Haugh Unit values were somewhat reduced. Egg size, eggshell weight, and yolk and albumen production were all enhanced by C. militaris supplementation. Notably, in hens fed the 2% C. militaris-supplemented diet, enhancement was more evident in the yolk than in the albumen. The overall quality of the egg yolk was enhanced when 2% C. militaris was added to the hens' diet, which led to increases in both yolk color and quantity. Eggshell thickness and weight were also higher among eggs laid by hens fed the supplemented diets. Although these effects differed depending on the chicken species, we established that, in general, C. militaris contributes to improving egg quality.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.16 no.12
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• pp.1804-1808
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• 2003

A layer experiment was conducted to determine the effects of supplementary methionine chelates (Cu, Zn and Mn), individual or in combination, on laying performance, eggshell quality, gizzard erosion, and IgG level of serum for 8 weeks. Five hundred 96-wk-old force molted ISA Brown layers were assigned to five dietary treatments. Basal diet was formulated to meet or exceed the nutrients requirements listed in NRC (1994). Five experimental diets were control, Zn-methionine chelate (Zn-Met) supplemented, Cumethionine chelate (Cu-Met) supplemented, Zn-Mn-methionine chelate (Zn-Mn-Met) supplemented and Zn-Mn-Cu-Met supplemented diet. Each treated diet was supplemented with respective mineral(s) at the level of 100 ppm in the form of methionine chelate. Egg production was increased by Cu-Met supplementation but decreased by Zn-Met supplementation. Egg weight was significantly (p<0.05) lower in Cu-Met treatment than those of the control and Zn-Met treatment. Specific gravity of eggs and eggshell strength were highest and soft egg production was lowest in Cu-Met treatment. Gizzard erosion index was significantly increased by supplementation of Cu-Met, Zn-Mn-Met or Zn-Mn-Cu-Met. Zinc content in liver significantly increased by Zn-Met, but not by Zn-Mn-Cu-Met treatment. In conclusion, 100 ppm Cu in Cu-Met chelate improved laying performance and eggshell quality but also increased gizzard erosion index. Supplementation of Zn-Met or its combination with other mineral chelates had no beneficial effects on laying performance and eggshell quality.