• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.559-568
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• 2012

White (Lohmann LSL) and Brown (ATAK-S) laying hens, were reared under organic and conventional cage rearing systems, and the effects of the rearing system on performance parameters, egg production, egg characteristics, and immune response were investigated. For this purpose, a total of 832 laying hens of two commercial hybrids, i.e., 416 white (Lohmann LSL) and 416 Brown (ATAK-S) layers, were used. The experiment lasted between 23 and 70 wk of age. In this study, the white layers yielded more eggs as compared to the brown layers in both organic and conventional production systems. Egg weight exhibited a similar pattern to that of laying performance. However, the total hen-housed egg number for the white birds in the organic system was fewer than that of white birds in the conventional cage facility; conversely, a contradictory tendency was observed for the brown birds. Livability of the white layers in the organic system was remarkably lower (14%) than that of the brown line, whereas the white line survived better (3.42%) than their brown counterparts in conventional cages. The feed conversion ratio of the white hens was markedly inferior in the organic system as compared to that of the white hens in the conventional system, whereas relatively lower deterioration was reported in brown layers when reared in an organic system. The organic production system increased egg albumen height and the Haugh unit in eggs of the brown layers. The yolk color score of organic eggs was lower than that of conventional eggs for both brown and white hens. The egg yolk ratio of eggs from white layers was found to be higher in organic eggs as compared to those obtained in the conventional system. All organic eggs had heavier shells than those produced in the conventional system. Eggs from brown layers had more protein content than eggs from white layers. Neither housing systems nor genotype influenced egg yolk cholesterol concentration. When compared to conventional eggs, n-3 fatty acid content was lower in organic eggs, and the n-6:n-3 ratio was higher in organic eggs. In conclusion, two hen genotypes showed different responses in terms of performance and egg quality to two different rearing systems. A commercial white strain produced more eggs with higher egg quality as compared to a native brown strain. The brown strain was found to have adapted well to organic production conditions when survival and total egg number was taken into consideration.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.17 no.10
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• pp.204-212
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• 2016

This study was conducted to develop an edible smoked egg by penetrating seasoning through pressurization without damaging the eggshell and to investigate the quality characteristics of the product. The lyophilized smoked egg consisted of 2.43% moisture, 4.11% crude ash, 46.08% crude protein, 40.85% crude fat and 6.53% hydrated carbon. The total content of polyphenol was 3.11 mg%, 35.70% saturated fatty acid and 64.30% unsaturated fatty acid. Major types of saturated fatty acids included palmitic acid (C16:0), stearic acid (C18:0) and lauric acid (C12:0), while major unsaturated fatty acids included oleic acid (C18:1) and linoleic acid (C18:2). Due to smoking of the egg, the eggshell is dark brown, the egg albumen, egg yolk and egg shell are darker than boiled eggs, and the value of a (redness) is higher than that of boiled eggs. Overall, smoked eggs were organically superior than boiled eggs because of their seasoning and smoke flavor. The results of this study are expected to further the development of processed foods using domestic eggs and improve the egg processing industry.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.125-131
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• 1993

This study was performed to find the desirable conditions for processing salted hard-boiled egg without cracking egg shell in NaCl solution under pressure. Among the many factors affecting saltiness of the shell egg, concentration of NaCl solution(0~40%), different salting time(0~45h) and salting pressure (0~4.5kg/$\textrm{cm}^2$) were employed to identify the permeability of NaCl into shell egg at ambient temperature. The saltiness of the shell egg was proportionally risen as concentration of NaCl solution, salting time and pressure increased. The most desirable saltiness was observed at the 0.70~1.00% of NaCl in albumen and 0.40~0.45% in yolk, Besides the saltiness, sensory evaluation of the shell egg were carried out to evaluate the quality of the salted shell egg. The effect of various concentration of NaCl solution, salting time and pressure on sensory scores of hard-boiled salted eggs showed that 20~40% of NaCl solution, 12~20 h of salting time, 3~4.5 kg/$\textrm{cm}^2$ of salting pressure were proper conditions for processing the product. These results indicate that the desirable condition to get salted hard-boiled shell egg were ; 30% of NaCl solution, 16h of salting time and 4.0kg/$\textrm{cm}^2$ of salting pressure.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.36 no.11
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• pp.1709-1717
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• 2023

Objective: A pivotal study was designed to investigate the effect of Hydroxy (HYC) Cu, Zn, and Mn on egg quality and laying performance of chickens under tropical conditions. Methods: A total of 1,260 Babcock White laying hens (20-wk-old) were randomly assigned to one of 4 treatments with 15 replicates of 21 hens each in a Randomized Complete Block Design. The birds were reared for 16 weeks and were fed the corn-soybean meal diets supplemented with one of the following mineral treatments: T1, inorganic (INO, 15 ppm CuSO4, 80ppm MnSO4 and 80 ppm ZnO); T2, Hydroxy-nutritional level (HYC-Nut, 15 ppm Cu, 80 ppm Mn, 80 ppm Zn from Hydroxy); T3, Hydroxy-Low (HYC-Low, 15 ppm Cu, 60 ppm Mn, 60 ppm Zn from Hydroxy); T4, Hydroxy plus inorganic (HYC+INO, 7.5 ppm HYC Cu+7.5 ppm CuSO4, 40 ppm HYC ZnO+40 ppm ZnSO4, 40 ppm HYC Mn+40 ppm MnSO4). The egg production was recorded daily, while the feed consumption, feed conversion ratio (FCR) and egg mass were determined at the end of each laying period. The egg quality parameters were assayed in eggs collected over 48 h in each laying period. Results: Overall, no significant effect of treatments was observed on percent egg production, egg weight and FCR (p>0.05). Feed intake was significantly lower in birds fed Hydroxy plus inorganic (p<0.05) diet. The supplementation of HYC-Low significantly increased the egg mass compared to the other treatments (p<0.05). HYC supplementation alone or in combination with INO elicited a positive effect on shell thickness, shell weight, shell weight per unit surface area, yolk colour, albumen and yolk index for a certain period (p<0.05), but not throughout the whole laying period. Conclusion: Dietary supplementation of HYC-Low (15-60-60 mg/kg) showed similar effects on production performance and egg quality characteristics in laying hens as compared to 15-80-80 mg/kg of Cu-Zn-Mn from inorganic sources. This indicates that sulphate based inorganic trace minerals can effectively be substituted by lower concentration of hydroxyl minerals.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.538-552
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• 2017

In this study, total mercury (THg) of Black-tailed Gull (Larus crassirostris) eggs laid on Baengnyeongdo, West Sea of Korea was analyzed in order to compare the THg concentrations of eggs depending on egg-laying order. The first-laid eggs ($mean{\pm}standard$ error, $234.4{\pm}11.2ng/g\;wet$, n=18, t=8.4, p<0.01) significantly had higher THg concentrations than the second-laid eggs ($182.8{\pm}9.1ng/g\;wet$, n=18). Also, the first-laid eggs had higher values in biometrics (length $63.10{\pm}0.49mm$, t=2.4, p<0.05; width $44.51{\pm}0.19mm$, t=4.3, p<0.01; weight $65.53{\pm}0.87g$, t=4.2, p<0.01) than the second-laid eggs (length $62.37{\pm}0.40mm$, width $43.55{\pm}0.17mm$, and weight $62.48{\pm}0.72g$). These differences might be attributed to the amount of food eaten by females relating to males' courtship feeding pattern (males increase courtship feeding rate before the first eggs are laid, and decrease the rate following the laying of the first eggs). Moreover, the lower food intake of females could diminish the quantities of egg albumen that contains a protein binds to most of methylmercury during the period of egg production. Therefore, it is necessary to consistently apply one of egg selection methods (targeted selection (the first-laid egg or the second-laid egg), random selection, and etc.) in one nest for ensuring comparability of mercury concentrations among monitoring sites and monitoring years.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.18 no.9
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• pp.1310-1319
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• 2005

This experiment was conducted to determine the effects of cage density (CD) and humate supplementation (HS) on laying performance, metabolic profile, and egg quality during the peak production period in hens. Lohman layers (n = 180, 46 wks of age) were blocked according to the location of cages and then allocated randomly to two levels of CD (4 or 6 hens per cage or 540 vs. 360 $cm^2$/hen) and three levels of HS (0, 0.15, and 0.30%). Egg production (EP) and feed consumption (FC) were measured daily; egg weight was measured bi-weekly; and BW was measured before and after the experiment. Blood and additional egg samples were obtained at the end of the experiment for determination of metabolic profile and egg quality. The data were analyzed using two-way ANOVA as repeated measures. Except for FC, CD did not affect laying performance parameters. Hens placed in high-density cages had lower FC than hens placed in normal-density cages. Increasing HS level linearly increased FC, EP, and feed conversion ratio (FCR). There was a CD by HS interaction effect on FC and EP. Hens placed in high-density cages had greater serum glucose, total protein, albumin, globulin, Ca, and P concentrations and tended to have greater serum corticosterone concentration than hens placed in normaldensity cages. Increasing HS level linearly increased serum glucose, total protein, albumin, globulin, creatine, and Ca concentrations and linearly decreased serum triglyceride and very low-density lipoprotein concentrations. There was a CD by HS interaction effect on serum glucose and albumin concentrations. There were no alterations in egg quality parameters in response to increasing CD. Albumen index and Haugh unit decreased linearly and other egg quality parameters did not change as HS level increased. In conclusion, increased caging density adversely affected metabolic profile, despite insignificantly deteriorating laying performance. Moreover, benefits from humate supplementation seem to be more noteworthy for hens housed in stressing conditions than for hens housed in standard conditions.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.54 no.3
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• pp.209-217
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• 2012

The objective of this study was to assess the external and internal quality traits of eggs in wholesale egg market in Colombo, Sri Lanka and the effect of storage period in egg quality traits in the same market after receiving the eggs. First, a total of 482 fresh eggs were randomly collected from the above market and external egg quality traits were determined and recorded according to the definitions given in the Specification for Chicken Egg SLS 959:1992. After that, a total of 288 fresh eggs were randomly collected and various external and internal egg quality traits were measured and recorded according to the standard procedures over a storage period of 1, 3 and 5 d after receiving the fresh eggs to the wholesale market. Information about the shops was also collected using a pretested questionnaire. Using the recorded data, shape index, Haugh unit, albumen index and yolk index were calculated for each egg. Average weight, width, length and shape index of the eggs in the sample was 59.96 g, 4.33 cm, 5.78 cm and 75.03, respectively. Average shape index value was much closer to the standard value of 74. From the total sample 80.5% eggs had a normal and sound shape. However only 60.37% of the eggs are in the desirable quality range specified in SLS 959:1992, when the overall shell quality of the sample is considered based on shell cleanliness, defects and shape. The results of the current study indicated that eggs had significant (p<0.05) deterioration of all internal quality parameters tested with increasing storage time. However the effect was not significant (p>0.05) between the storage periods of 3 and 5 d after receiving eggs except for yolk color and yolk height. Desirable category of eggs had reduced and rejections had increased with the storage period. Main problems associated with the particular market were less space availability, higher percentages of dirty eggs, unavailability of proper packaging materials, no standard packaging system for eggs, and not implementing a standard grading system for eggs. Therefore the results of this study suggest that proper egg handling and storage conditions such as low temperature storage may be implemented to increase the proportion of desirable quality eggs in the above market.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.19 no.8
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• pp.1179-1189
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• 2006

This experiment was designed to examine the effects of supplemental vitamin D on laying performance, metabolic profile and egg quality of hens fed diets containing different fat sources and levels. Lohman strains (n = 480) were assigned to one of 10 diets: basal diet (BD), BD plus 2.5 and 5.0% sunflower oil (SO) or tallow (T) at vitamin D provided $1{\times}$ and $3{\times}$ of the current recommendation. The experiment lasted from week 30 to 44 of age. Each diet was tested in 12 replicate cages of 4 hens. Production, metabolism, and egg quality data were subjected to three-way ANOVA. Both fats decreased feed intake (FI) as compared to BD. Increasing SO and T levels linearly decreased and quadratically increased FI, respectively. The dietary factors did not affect egg production (EP) and egg weight. Vitamin D supplementation increased and decreased EP when diets contained SO and T, respectively. Feed conversion efficiency (FCE) for hens fed SO was lower than for hens fed T. However, increasing T level improved FCE, whereas increasing SO level worsened FCR. Vitamin D supplementation increased serum vitamin D and glucose concentrations. Vitamin D supplementation also caused a decrease and an increase in serum vitamin D concentration when diets contained SO and T, respectively. Serum glucose concentration for hens fed SO was lower than hens fed T. Increasing fat level linearly increased serum triglyceride and VLDL concentrations, regardless of the fat type. Increasing SO level linearly decreased serum cholesterol concentration. Vitamin D supplementation did not alter lipid metabolites. The dietary factors did not affect serum total protein, Ca, and P concentrations. As compared with BD, feeding SO decreased dry tibia and ash weights more than feeding T. Vitamin D supplementation tended to increase dry tibia weight and decrease tibia ash weight. Eggshell strength and thickness, yolk and albumen indexes, and Haugh unit were not responsive to the dietary factors. Eggshell strength quadratically increased with increasing T level. Yolk color for hens fed SO was lower than for hens fed T. The dietary factors did not affect most of yolk fatty acids. Increasing SO level quadratically decreased yolk $C_{18:2}$ concentration. Vitamin D supplementation increased and decreased yolk $C_{18:2}$ concentration when diets contained SO and T, respectively. In conclusion, increasing fat level improved laying performance without altering metabolic profile and egg quality. Vitamin D supplementation had minor alteration effects on laying performance, metabolic profile, and egg quality in response to fat feeding.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.573-581
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• 2006

This experiment was conducted to determine the effects of supplemental methionine, lysine, choline, and sulfur on laying performance, metabolic parameters, and egg quality of hens fed diets containing sorghum (Sorghum vulgare) during the peak laying period. Lohman layers (n = 144), 30-wk of age as 6 replicate cages of 4 hens, were allocated randomly to receive basal diets containing either 22% corn (B) or 22% sorghum (BS) and diets BS plus 0.57% methionine, 0.66% lysine, 0.47% choline, or 0.05% sulfur for 98 d. Feed intake (FI) and egg production (EP) were recorded daily, egg weight (EW) was measured bi-weekly, and body weight (BW) was measured monthly. A sample of 12 eggs from each experimental group was collected every month to evaluate egg quality. At the end of the experiment, blood samples were collected for metabolite concentrations. Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA as repeated measures and significant differences between the experimental groups were assessed using Duncan's Multiple Range test. Partial replacement of corn with sorghum in the basal diet did not affect BW, EP, and FCR but increased FI by 5.7% and EW by 2.4%. The effects of additives on laying performance were variable. Except for serum total protein (STP) concentration, other metabolic parameters were not affected by partial replacement of corn with sorghum in the basal diet. Hens fed diet BS had lower SPT concentration than hens fed diet B. Except for methionine supplementation, other supplements ameliorated depression in STP concentration. The additives did not affect other metabolic parameters. Egg quality responses to the experimental diets were also variable. Partial replacement of corn with sorghum in the basal diet did not affect eggshell characteristics (both thickness and stiffness), whereas it had variable effects on inner egg quality parameters (increased yolk index, depressed yolk color, and unaltered albumen index and Haugh unit). In conclusion, laying hen diets could include low-tannin sorghum (0.26%) up to 22% without necessitating extra supplements to overcome compromised performance.

• Journal of the Korean Applied Science and Technology
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.577-586
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• 2017

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of fermented earthworm cast feed prepared with three complexed probiotics containing Bacillus subtilis separated from the earthworm casts, on egg production, egg quality and odor removal from poultry house. A total of 240 laying hens were divided into 4 treatments and completely randomized. Experimental groups were divided into control, 0.3 to 0.5% (fermented earthworm cast feed FECF3, FECF5) and 0.2% commercial probiotics (CP). The egg production rate was significantly higher in the FECF groups compared to the control group fed the normal feed, but there was no difference in the CP group. Haugh units, egg shell thickness, breaking strength, egg yolk index and albumen height were increased in FECF groups compared to control but not in CP group. The n-3 content of eggs was higher in the FECF groups than in the control group, while the n-6/n-3 ratio was lower and there was no difference from the CP group. Ammonia production was lower in the CP and FECF groups compared to the control group after 5 days storage at room temperature to poultry feces.