• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.30 no.10
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• pp.1372-1381
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• 2017

Objective: Our study provides information on phenotypes of local chickens and guinea fowl and their body measures as well as on major genes in local chickens in northern Ghana. Methods: Qualitative and morphometric traits were recorded on 788 local chickens and 394 guinea fowl in urban households in Tamale, Ghana. Results: The results showed considerable variation of color traits and numerous major genes in local chickens, while color variations and related genotypes in guinea fowl were limited. In local chickens, white was preferred for plumage, whereas dark colors were preferred for beak and shanks. More than half of the chickens carried at least one major gene, but the contributions of single gene carriers were low. All calculated allele frequencies were significantly lower than their expected Mendelian allele frequencies. We observed higher mean body weight and larger linear body measures in male as compared to female chickens. In female chickens, we detected a small effect of major genes on body weight and chest circumference. In addition, we found some association between feather type and plumage color. In guinea fowl, seven distinct plumage colors were observed, of which pearl grey pied and pearl grey were the most prevalent. Male pearl grey pied guinea fowl were inferior to pearl grey and white guinea fowl in terms of body weight, body length and chest circumference; their shank length was lower than that of pearl grey fowl. Conclusion: Considerable variation in qualitative traits of local chickens may be indicative of genetic diversity within local chicken populations, but major genes were rare. In contrast, phenotypic and genetic diversity in local guinea fowl is limited. Broader genetic diversity studies and evaluation of trait preferences of local poultry producers are required for the design of appropriate breeding programs.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.13 no.7
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• pp.986-990
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• 2000

The quality characteristics and proximate composition of the eggs of pheasant, chukar, quail, and guinea fowl were compared. Eggs of the 4 species had a similar ovalish conical shape with blunt and pointed ends, showing the shape indices of 77.30-79.63 with no statistical difference. Egg weight was heaviest in guinea fowl (46.65 g), followed by pheasant (25.79 g), chukar (19.16 g) and quail (10.34 g). Proportion of yolk to the total egg weight was highest in pheasant (35.7%), followed by chukar (33.9%), quail (31.4%) and guinea fowl (30.6%). Albumen content was highest in quail showing 61.2%, while pheasant, chukar and guinea fowl were in the range of 55.6~57.4%. The ratio of yolk to albumen (Y/A) was highest in pheasant (0.65), followed by chukar (0.60), guinea fowl (0.55) and quail (0.52). The portion of shell to the total egg weight was highest in guinea fowl (13.5%) and lowest in quail (7.3%). The shell thickness of the eggs was thickest in guinea fowl ($462.8{{\mu}m}$), followed by pheasant ($241.5{{\mu}m}$), chukar ($231.8{{\mu}m}$) and quail ($174.8{{\mu}m}$). The contents of moisture, crude protein, crude fat and crude ash of whole egg were in the ranges of 74.26-74.50%, 11.98-12.77%, 10.83-11.91% and 1.02-1.10%, respectively, with no statistical difference (p>0.05) among the species. Albumen was high in moisture (87.46-87.99%) and very low in crude fat (0.09-0.13%), which was quite different from yolk. Yolk showed relatively low level of moisture (49.71-50.42%) and high levels of fat (31.48-32.32%), crude protein (15.12-15.99%) and crude ash (1.53-1.86%). No species difference in the proximate compositions of albumen and yolk was found except in crude ash content of albumen.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.831-836
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• 2001

Little information on the cholesterol content and the fatty acid composition of avian species other than chicken is available. This study was conducted to compare the yolk cholesterol content and the fatty acid profiles of some wild birds maintained in captivity on commercial grain-based chicken diets. The concentration of cholesterol/g of yolk as well as the total yolk cholesterol per egg varied among species. Yolk cholesterol concentration, expressed as mg/g of yolk, was highest in chukar, followed by pheasant, guinea fowl and quail, while total yolk cholesterol in an egg was highest in guinea fowl, followed by pheasant, chuckar and quail. An inverse relationship between yolk cholesterol concentration and egg weight was observed among species with an exception of quail. Although major fatty acids of egg yolk were oleic acid, palmitic acid, linoleic acid and stearic acid in all birds, the composition varied among species. Chukar and quail showed higher oleic acid content than pheasant and guinea fowl, while showing lower linoleic acid. Fatty acids of chukar and guinea fowl eggs were more saturated than those of pheasant and quail. Chukar and especially quail had higher monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) than pheasant and guinea fowl; in quail egg 51.6% of total fatty acids were MUFA. Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), essential fatty acids (EFA) and the ratio of PUFA to saturated fatty acid (P/S ratio) were higher in pheasant and guinea fowl than in chukar and quail. Differences in fatty acid profile of triglyceride (TG) among birds were largely similar to those of total lipid. In comparison to TG, phosphatidyl choline (PC) was low in MUFA while high in saturated fatty acids (SFA), PUFA, P/S ratio and EFA. PC was most saturated in guinea fowl egg yolk, followed by chukar, quail and pheasant. PUFA, P/S ratio and EFA in PC were highest in pheasant followed by chukar, guinea fowl and quail. PE was distinguished from PC by its high contents of stearic acid, eicosapentenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexenoic acid (DHA) while low in palmitic, oleic and linoleic acids. In egg yolk of all birds MUFA was significantly lower in PE than in PC except in quail. Compared to other species, quail had a considerably higher content of MUFA in PE at the expense of SFA and PUFA.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.28 no.10
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• pp.1471-1478
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• 2015

The present study aimed to assess the effect of dietary substitution of soybean meal (SBM) with dehulled-micronized faba bean (Vicia faba var. minor) in guinea fowl broilers on their growth traits, carcass quality, and meat fatty acids composition. In this trial, 120 day-old guinea fowl keets were randomly assigned to two treatments which were fed from hatch to 12 weeks of age. Birds were fed two wheat middlings-based diets comprising of a control treatment which contained SBM (78.3 g/kg) and a test diet containing dehulled-micronized faba bean (130 g/kg) as the main protein source. Substituting SBM with faba bean had no adverse effect on growth traits, dressing percentage, or breast and thigh muscles relative weight of the guinea fowls. Conversely, a decrease (p<0.05) of abdominal fat was found in guinea fowls fed the faba bean-diet. Breast muscle of birds fed faba bean had higher $L^*$ score (p<0.05) and water-holding capacity (p<0.05) than the SBM control diet. Meat from guinea fowls fed faba bean had less total lipids (p<0.05) and cholesterol (p<0.01), and higher concentrations of phospholipids (p<0.01). Feeding faba bean increased polyunsaturated fatty acid concentrations in breast meat and decreased the saturated fatty acid levels. Moreover, dietary faba bean improved the atherogenic and thrombogenic indexes in guinea fowl breast meat. Results indicated that substitution of SBM with faba bean meal in guinea fowl diet can improve carcass qualitative traits, enhancing also meat lipid profile without negatively affecting growth performance.

• Journal of the korean veterinary medical association
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.218-221
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• 2000

Five farmed guinea fowl(Numidia meleagris) ared 6months in S farm of Kunsan, were submitted to Iksan branch, Livestock Development and Research Institute of Chonbuk province for necropsy. Grossly, systematic anemia, depressed, emaciation, and mild blood d

• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.16 no.1 s.26
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• pp.41-50
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• 1980

Chenodeoxycholic acid(CDCA) has been used as a gallstone dissolving agent since 1972. Recently, ursodeoxycholic acid(UDCA) has been reported to be effective in dissolving gallstones. Both bile acids increased bile flow. The increase in bile flow associated with an increase in cholesterol level in bile after CDCA or UDCA infusion was reported. In this study, using the smooth muscle strips of guinea pig and fowl, responses of the cholates were observed. In addition, the influence of adrenergic blocking agents on the response of the strips to cholates was investigated. Also the effects of cholates on cardiac function were examined by using isolated atria of rabbit and heart of anesthetized frog. The results are as follows: 1) All cholates, such as UDCA, CDCA, and CA produced a marked inhibitory effect on the motility in isolated duodenal strip of guinea pig and fowl, however, only UDCA showed the contraction in the isolated esophagus of fowl. These effects of cholates were blocked by propranolol. 2) In isolated guinea pig stomach strip and gall bladder, cholates exhibited a marked inhibitory effect on the motility and the effects due to UDCA and CA were blocked by phenoxybenzamine while CDCA was not affected. 3) The spontaneous and ouabain induced arrhythmia was partially abolished by cholates. However, concomitant administration of cholates with ouabain or epinephrine caused a marked prolongation in occurrence of atrial arrhythmia in comparison with ouabain or epinephrine alone in isolated rabbit atria. 4) In the heart of anesthetized frog, the epinephrine-induced arrhythmia was partially abolished by cholates. The combined treatment with cholates and ouabain or epinephrine produced a marked prolongation in occurrence of the arrhythmia in comparison with, ouabain or epinephrine alone. From the above results, it can be suggested that the effects of cholates on the smooth muscle of duodenum and esophagus are produced in response to adrenergic ${\beta}$-receptor and the effect or gall bladder and stomach is more likely due to the direct effect on the muscle. In addition, cholates exhibit a slight antiarrhythmic effect on heart, therefore, cholates can be classified as a nonselective antiarrhythmic drug, such as propranolol.

• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.11 no.1 s.17
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• pp.27-31
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• 1975

1. The isolated strips of guinea-pig, fowl and reptiles (snake and tortoise) showed consistenly excitatory responses to $PGE_1\;and\;E_2$, which were dose-dependent. 2. Frog intestine revealed inhibitory responses to both $PGE_1\;and\;PGE_2$ except a small of $PGE_2$ (1-10 ng/ml) caused slight contraction. 3. The intestines of pieces showed inconsistent responses to $PGE_1\;and\;E_2$. In fresh-water fish(carp), $PGE_1$ produced relaxation under the dose of 50 ng/ml, and contraction by the large doses, but $PGE_2$ consistently caused contraction in dose-dependent manner. However, the strips of sea-water fish revealed the different responses to PGE compound: $PGE_1$ caused relaxation and $PGE_2$ conversly contraction even though in small degree. 4. These results that there are genera differences in the responses of the longitudinal strips of intestine to $PGE_1\;and\;PGE_2$ was assumed to be possibly correlated with evolutionally primitive function of gut.

• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.16 no.1 s.26
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• pp.35-39
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• 1980

In this study, the effects of phenoxybenzamine and related drugs on the action of CCK-PZ and caerulein were examined in isolated gall bladder of guinea pig and higher esophagus strip of fowl. The strips were placed in a bath containing Locke-Ringer solution maintained at $38^{\circ}C$. Oxygen was continuously bubbled through the solution. The contractile response was measured isometrically by a force displacement transducer connected to polygraph. In isolated gall bladder preparation caerulein produced contractile response of CCK-PZ type, but the relative potency on a weight basis was 30 times stronger than CCK-PZ. The response of caerulein or CCK-PZ was not blocked by cholinergic blocking agent and both alpha and beta adrenergic blockades, however, the response of caerulein or CCK-PZ was exceptionally blocked by phenoxybenzamine. In isolated esophagus strip CCK-PZ with high concentration produced marked contraction which was not modified by atropine and other blocking agents, whereas the response was blocked by phenoxybenzamine. These results lead to the conclusion that phenoxybenzamine inherently inhibits the contractile response of CCK-PZ and caerulein on esophagus and other smooth muscle.