• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.282-304
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• 2023

This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of carotenoid supplementation on the performance, egg quality, and immunity of laying hens using a meta-analysis approach. The database was searched using Google Scholar and Scopus, from 2012 to 2022. The literature was published in English. 47 Articles were selected for meta-analysis. Analyses were performed using the Open Meta-analyst for Ecology and Evolution (OpenMEE) software. The heterogeneity and data validation against publication bias were analyzed using JASP 0.16.2 software. Overall, the results showed that carotenoid supplementation improved feed intake by 0.32 g/day/hen [95% confidence interval (CI)=0.02 to 0.61], final body weight by 0.33 g/hen (95% CI=0.05 to 0.60), egg production by 0.38% (95% CI=0.14 to 0.63), egg weight by 0.29 g (95% CI=0.09 to 0.5), yolk colour by 2.11 (95% CI=1.71 to 2.51), Haugh unit (HU) by 0.26 (95% CI=0.11 to 0.42), yolk carotenoids by 1.17 ㎍/kg (95% CI=0.59 to 1.75), immunoglobulin A (IgA) by 0.74 mg/L (95% CI=0.18 to 1.29), and lower yolk cholesterol by -0.38 mg/g (95% CI=-0.59 to -0.16). Feed conversion ratio (FCR), eggshell thickness, and white blood cells were unaffected by the application of carotenoids. The heterogeneity analysis showed variability in all studies (<0.05). In conclusion, carotenoid supplementation can elevate productivity, enhance egg quality, and improve immunity. However, based on Kendall's test, there was a publication bias in several parameters, namely FCR, egg weight, HU, yolk carotenoids, and IgA.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.235-240
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• 2005

Two hundred and eighty-eight 21-week-old Hyline Brown laying hens were randomly allotted to 9 treatments, 32 birds for each treatment. A 3${\times}$3 (chromium${\times}$L-carnitine) factorial experiment was designed to investigate the single and interactive effects of adding yeast chromium (0, 400 and 600 ${\mu}g/kg$) and L-carnitine (0, 50 and 100 mg/kg) to corn-soybean diets on lipid metabolism of laying hens for 7 weeks. The results showed that 600 ${\mu}g/kg$ chromium or 100 mg/kg L-carnitine had significant effects on most indices of lipid metabolism (p<0.05 or 0.01). There were significant interactions on the concentration of liver triglycerides, egg yolk cholesterol, abdominal fat percentage between chromium and L-carnitine (p=0.0003-0.0500). Adding 400 ${\mu}g/kg$ chromium and 100 mg/kg Lcarnitine simultaneously was the best for reducing egg yolk cholesterol and adding 400 ${\mu}g/kg$ chromium and 50 mg/kg L-carnitine at the same time was the best for reducing abdominal fat percentage. There was no side effect on production performance of laying hens while chromium or (and) L-carnitine reduced liver lipid, abdominal fat and egg yolk cholesterol.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.19 no.8
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• pp.1174-1178
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• 2006

An experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation of copper chelates in the form of methionine, chitosan and yeast on the performance of laying hens. Four hundred ISA Brown layers, 84 wks old, were assigned to 4 treatments: control, 100 ppm Cu in methionine chelate (Met-Cu), 100 ppm Cu as chitosan chelate (Chitosan-Cu) and 100 ppm Cu as yeast chelate (Yeast-Cu). Each treatment had five replicates of 20 hens. Hen-day and hen-housed egg production and egg weight were significantly (p<0.05) increased by Met-Cu supplementation. The increase by Chitosan-Cu and Yeast-Cu supplementation was not significant. Contrast of the control vs. Cu chelates showed egg weight was significantly (p<0.05) increased by Cu chelate supplementation. Soft-shell egg production was significantly (p<0.05) reduced by supplementation of Cu chelates. Met-Cu treatment showed the lowest incidence of soft egg production. Gizzard erosion index was increased by Cu chelate supplementation. Crude fat in liver, total cholesterol in yolk and Cu content in liver and yolk were not significantly influenced by Cu chelate supplementation. It was concluded that dietary supplementation of 100 ppm Cu as Met-Cu significantly increased egg production and egg weight. Cu-Met chelate was also effective in reducing soft-shell egg production but increased gizzard erosion index.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.328-333
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• 2010

The effects of green tea on the physicochemical properties of eggs were investigated. One-hundred-and-fifty Isa Brown hens (27 weeks of age) were studied over 10 weeks. Green tea was added to the diet at levels of 4% and 8% w/w. The contents of Ca, K, P, Fe and Mg in eggs increased upon dietary supplementation with green tea powder, and were higher in the yolk than in the white, with the exception of Mg. The increase was greatest for Ca, from 41.0 mg% to 119.8 mg%, in egg white. For Fe, an increase from 3.7 mg% to 12.6 mg% was apparent in egg yolk. When hens consumed the green tea-supplemented diets, average egg weight decreased from 68.8 g to 64.4 g, but the total cholesterol content of egg yolk did not significantly change (control value: 1,899.1 mg% test value: 2,011.3 mg%). In sensory evaluation tests, egg white was similar in terms of astringency and grayness regardless of diet, and egg yolk was yellow-to-orange in color, and rated as fishy or slightly fishy, when green tea diets were administered. Such diets reduced pH values in all of the white, yolk, and white/yolk combination groups. The major fatty acids of egg yolk, constituting more than 90% of total fatty acids, were palmitic, stearic, oleic, and linoleic acid. Green tea diets reduced the saturated fatty acid level from 32.0% to 27.4% of total fatty acids, and unsaturated fatty acid levels increased from 68.0% to 72.6% in egg yolk.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.630-639
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• 2010

Immune response and yolk cholesterol are crucial factors for commercial chicken producers. The objectives of this study were to investigate the effect of selenium-enriched Japanese radish sprouts (Se-enriched JRS) and R. capsulatus synergistically on immune response and cholesterol in laying hens. A total of 50 laying hens (20-wk old) were assigned to 5 dietary treatment groups, and fed diets supplemented with 2.5 ${\mu}g/kg$, 5 ${\mu}g/kg$, 10 ${\mu}g/kg$ Se-enriched JRS and 5 ${\mu}g/kg$ Se-enriched JRS+R. capsulatus (0.02%). Egg production and yolk color were significantly improved by the supplementation of Se-enriched JRS+R. capsulatus in the layer diet (p<0.05). Compared to the control, serum cholesterol concentration and triglyceride levels were decreased by all the treatments (p<0.05). After 8-wk of the experiment, supplementation of 5 ${\mu}g/kg$, 10 ${\mu}g/kg$ and Se-enriched JRS+R. capsulatus significantly reduced yolk cholesterol and triglycerides, while the greatest reduction was observed when R. capsulatus was incorporated with Se-enriched JRS. Spleen, bursa and thymus weight were significantly increased by both the 5 ${\mu}g/kg$ and 10 ${\mu}g/kg$ Se-enriched JRS. Compared to the control, supplementation of 5 ${\mu}g/kg$ and 10 ${\mu}g/kg$ Se-enriched JRS significantly increased serum IgG and yolk IgY concentration and foot web index activity by Newcastle Disease Virus (p<0.05). After 4-wk and 8-wk of supplementation, the highest number of leukocytes was observed with Se-enriched JRS+R. capsulatus (p<0.05). The highest concentration of serum and yolk Se was found in Se-enriched JRS plus R. capsulatus treatment. Combined dietary supplementation of Se-enriched JRS and R. capsulatus might be beneficial for better health, disease protection and overall production performance.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.1 no.3
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• pp.173-178
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• 1988

To study the effects of utilizing extruded full fat soybean (FFS) in layer diets, 300 White Leghorn pullets were put in trial divided into 5 treatments; control (commercial soybean meal as protein source), FFS 50% (replacing 50% of soybean meal with FFS), FFS 100% (replacing all amount of soybean meal with FFS), soybean oil and tallow added treatment. Each treatment consisted of 5 replicates of 12 birds. Egg production and feed efficiency from hens fed control diet were significantly lower than from hens fed the other diets. Significant differences in egg production and feed efficiency were found between the control and the other treatments. Cholesterol concentration of serum and egg yolk were not affected by any dietary treatment. Feeding extruded full fat soybean did not cause pancreatic hypertrophy nor change in mortality. There was an indication that linoleic acid (C18:2), linolenic acid (C18:3) and iodine contents increased in the thigh and egg yolk lipid of the groups fed FFS or soybean soybean can serve as effective protein source for layer diets if economically justified.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Service
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.119-128
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• 2012

This study was performed to investigate the freshness and nutritive components of eggs from Incheon area. The eggs of 64 brands collected from 7 hypermarkets and 6 brands collected from farms were examined to test the Haugh unit (HU), egg yolk index and specific gravity. HU and specific gravity were higher in farm eggs than in hypermarket eggs (P<0.05), and there was no difference in the egg yolk index. Among hypermarket eggs, HU and egg yolk index were higher in the graded eggs than in non-graded eggs (P<0.05), and specific gravity was not different between them. HU and egg yolk index of the eggs collected in March were higher than those in August (P<0.05). To monitor the bacterial contamination, total coliforms, total bacterial counts (TBC) and Salmonella enteritidis were examined. Salmonella enteritidis and total coliforms were not detected from all eggs. TBC of farm eggs were less than $10^1$ CFU/mL in all samples and TBC of hypermarket eggs were less than $10^1$ CFU/mL in 187 samples, $10^1{\sim}10^2$ CFU/mL in 3 samples and $10^3{\sim}10^4$ CFU/mL in 2 samples, respectively. Antimicrobial residues were not detected from all eggs tested. The vitamin E contents in the vitamin E enriched eggs from 6 brands hypermarket were 1.98~22.96 mg/yolk100 g ($14.04{\pm}8.81$ mg/yolk100g), and those of 5 brands among them were higher than the average of ordinary eggs. In one brand egg, vitamin E content was lower than the average of ordinary eggs. The vitamin E contents of ordinary eggs were 1.75~16.36 mg/yolk100 g (average $5.57{\pm}2.76$ mg/yolk100 g) and there were no price differences between vitamin E enriched eggs and ordinary eggs. In the contents of vitamin E, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and cholesterol, there were no significant differences according to the price. These results suggests that egg production, distribution, and management system should be improved for supplying fresh eggs to consumers at reasonable prices.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.171-176
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• 2002

Two experiments were conducted to investigate the effects of taurine supplementation on the egg production and egg quality in laying hen. In experiment 1, 19-wk-old laying hens were allowed one of four taurine supplemented diets (0 (control), 0.4, 0.8, and 1.2% taurine) for 10 weeks. The mean egg weight was lower about 1.2g in the 0.8% diet compared to the control. Egg production rate, egg mass, and feed intake in layers fed with 0.4, 0.8, and 1.2% taurine supplemented diets decreased by 8%∼24%, 3%∼l4% and 11%∼l5%, respectively, relative to the control. However, the feed conversion, parameters of egg quality, and the concentration of triacylglycerol and the level of cholesterol in yolk were not different among the treatments. In experiment 2, 81-wk-old laying hens were allocated one of three taurine supplemented diets(0 (control), 1 and 2% taurine) for 6 weeks. The egg weight, egg production rate, egg mass, feed intake, feed conversion, parameters of egg quality, and level of yolk cholesterol were not different among the treatments, but the concentration of triacylglycerol in yolk was higher by 14%∼19% compared to the control. In conclusion, these results indicated that taurine supplementation in early laying stage of layers decreased hen performance.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.81-88
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• 2002

The objective of this study was to investigate the line-by-feed additive interaction on egg traits and yolk cholesterol level in laying hens. Hy-line W-98 (white shell line) and Hy-line Brown (brown shell line) were used as experimental stocks and three groups were assigned in each line. The age of hens used in this study were from 40- to 46-wk-old. Two different levels of chitosan were also used as additive in chicken diet. The first (CH$_{30}$) and second (CH$_{60}$) experimental groups were fed basal diet added 30mg and 60mg chitosan/kg feed, respectively. And the control group (CON) hens were fed with basal diet only. The eggs were collected and analyzed at the end of 40, 42, 44, and 46-wk-old. In the mean egg weight, the CH$_{30}$ in Hy-line Brown was significantly heavier (P<0.05) than CON, but the CH$_{30}$ in Hy-line W-98 was significantly lighter (P<0.05) than CON. Whereas, the mean egg weight did not significantly differ between CH$_{60}$ and CON in both line. The mean albumen percentage in Hy-line Brown did not show significant between experimental groups and control group. On the other hand, the mean albumen percentage of CH$_{60}$ in Hy-line W-98 was significantly lower (P < 0.05) than that of CON, but there was no significantly different between CH$_{30}$ and CON. In the mean yolk percentage, it showed a reverse trend as shown in the mean albumen percentage; there were significantly higher (P<0.05) in CH$_{60}$ than in CON fur the Hy-line W-98, and higher in CH$_{30}$ than in CON for the Hy-line Brown. However, the mean shell percentages did not significantly differ between experimental groups and control group in both lines. In the mean yolk cholesterol levels, the CH$_{30}$ and CH$_{60}$ in both lines were lower by 0.46 mg ∼2.80 mg per gram yolk than CON. Although the interaction effect of line-by-supplementing level of chitosan in hens diet on the pooled mean of yolk cholesterol level was no significant, it showed a highly significant interaction (P<0.01) at three of four experimental ages.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.59-68
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• 2006

This experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation of activated charcoal (AC) mixed with wood vinegar on performance and egg quality in laying hens. A total of one hundred ninety two, 56-wk-old Lohmann brown laying hens were divided into four groups, consisting four replicates of 12 birds each and fed one of the four experimental diets containing AC 0%, AC 0.5%, AC 1%, AC 2% for 5 wks. The blood profiles and contents of total lipid and cholesterol, fatty acid profiles in egg yolk were determined. There were no significant differences in laying performance, feed intake and vitelline membrane strength among the treatments. The eggshell breaking strength and Haugh unit were significantly increased in 2% AC group compared to the other groups (P<0.05). Egg yolk index in 2% AC group was significantly higher (P<0.05) than those of the control and 0.5% AC group and yolk color was significantly improved by the dietary AC (P<0.05). The levels of serum total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol and enzyme activities were not influenced by feeding AC. Total lipid of egg yolk in 1 % and 2% AC groups was significantly decreased (P<0.05) compared to that of the control, although there was no significant difference in yolk cholesterol. In conclusion, the addition of activated charcoal with wood vinegar in layer diet resulted in improving egg quality by means of enhancing eggshell breaking strength, Haugh unit, yolk index and yolk color.