• Animal Bioscience
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• v.34 no.3_spc
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• pp.443-448
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• 2021

Objective: Astaxanthin is a natural super antioxidant. The present study was carried out to investigate the effect of astaxanthin rich Phaffia rhodozyma (PR) supplementation in diets on laying production performance, egg quality, antioxidant defenses and immune defenses in laying hens. Methods: A total of five hundred and twelve 60-week-old Lohmann Brown laying hens (2,243±12 g) were randomly assigned to four groups, each including 4 replicates with 32 birds per replicate. Astaxanthin rich PR was added to corn-soybean meal diets to produce experimental diets containing 0 (Control), 800 mg/kg, 1,200 mg/kg, and 1,600 mg/kg PR, respectively. The astaxanthin content in the diet was 0.96 mg/kg, 1.44 mg/kg and 1.92 mg/kg respectively. Results: Results showed that dietary PR supplementation tended to increase daily feed intake (p = 0.0512). There was no effect of astaxanthin rich PR on Haugh units, albumen height, egg shape index, eggshell strength, and eggshell thickness at weeks 6 (p>0.05). However, egg yolk color was significantly improved (p<0.05). In addition, astaxanthin rich PR supplementation significantly increased serum glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activity (p<0.05), increased serum immunoglobulin G content (p<0.05), and reduced malondialdehyde content (p<0.05) in laying hens. Conclusion: In conclusion, astaxanthin rich PR can improve the color of egg yolk, enhance the antioxidant defenses, and regulate the immune function.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.553-558
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• 2001

The effect of poor feather cover on feed intake and production was examined in two commercial strains of layers (tinted and brown egg) over 91-98 weeks of age. Hens were housed at four per cage ($600cm^2/bird$) in a commercial layer shed which ranged in temperature from 13.2 to $16.8^{\circ}C$. At the start of the experiment 50% of the birds were classified as having poor feather cover. Feather score was highly correlated with feed intake. Poor feather cover on the neck and the back were the best indicators of hens with high feed intake. Feed intake of hens with poor feather cover was 16% higher (p<0.05) than hens with good feather cover. Hens with good feather cover produced more eggs (p<0.05) early in the trial and had a higher (p<0.05) liveweight, but there was no significant differences in egg weight. Feed per dozen eggs was superior (p<0.05) in hens with good feather cover. Feather cover on the back and vent were the best indicators of overall feather score, while the tail, base of tail and vent were the body parts most affected in birds with poor feather cover.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.109-113
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• 2016

This study aimed to examine the nutrient utilization of rump round meat and lotus root using young (32 wk) and aged hens (108 wk) as an animal model. Rump round meat and lotus root were prepared with or without enzymatic treatment. For each age group of laying hens, a total of 24 Hy-Line Brown laying hens were randomly allotted to one of two dietary treatments with six replicates. For rump round meat, the true total tract retention rate (TTTR) of dry matter (DM) and nitrogen (N) were unaffected by either enzymatic treatment or hen age. However, aged hens had greater (p<0.01) TTTR of energy and crude fat than young hens. Enzymatic treatment did not influence the TTTR of energy or crude fat. In addition, we did not observe any significant interaction between the TTTR of DM, energy, N, or crude fat in rump round meat and hen age or enzymatic treatment. The TTTR of DM remained unchanged between controls and enzyme-treated lotus root for young hens. However, enzyme-treated lotus root exhibited greater (p<0.05) TTTR of DM than control lotus root for aged hens, resulting in a significant interaction (p<0.05). The TTTR of energy and N in lotus roots were greater (p<0.01) for aged hens than for young hens. In conclusion, enzymatic treatment exerted beneficial effects on energy and nutrient utilization in aged hens, suggesting the aged hen model is practical for simulation of metabolism of elderly individuals.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.55 no.2
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• pp.115-122
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• 2013

This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of dietary ${\beta}$-mannanase supplementation and palm kernel meal (PKM) inclusion (5%) on laying performance, egg quality and nutrient utilizability of laying hens with 73 weeks of age. A total of 240 Lohmann brown laying hens with average 77.5% egg production were randomly allocated with 60 hens per treatment, 4 replicates per treatment and 15 hens per replicate. Experimental design was a completely randomized design with $2{\times}2$ factorial arrangement, with the factors being (1) two levels of PKM (0 vs. 5%) and (2) with or without dietary ${\beta}$-mannanase (480 IU/kg of diet CTCzyme$^{(R)}$) supplementation. All hens were housed in cages ($35cmW{\times}35cmD{\times}40cmH$) with 2 hens per cage for six weeks feeding trial. Laying performance was recorded daily during feeding trial. Egg quality, nutrients utilizability and blood assays were done at the end of feeding trial. Egg production was improved (P<0.05) by both dietary PKM inclusion and ${\beta}$-mannanase combined supplementation. Either ${\beta}$-mannanase or PKM did not affect feed intakes and feed conversion ratio of all diets. Egg weight of hens fed diet containing 5% of PKM had heavier (P<0.05) eggs compared with hens fed without PKM. Albumen height was improved (P<0.05) by dietary mannanase supplementation. Crude fat utilization of 5% PKM diet was higher than that of no PKM diet regardless of ${\beta}$-mannanase supplementation. Both DM and total carbohydrate utilization were decreased (P<0.05) in hens fed 5% PKM diet. Serum IgG and yolk IgY contents of PKM groups were lower (P<0.05) than those of no PKM groups. This result showed that 5% PKM diet, independent of dietary ${\beta}$-mannanase supplementation, was able to improve egg production. In addition, dietary ${\beta}$-mannanase supplementation could be used for improving the albumen height of eggs.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.253-259
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• 1999

The objects of this experiment was to investigate the effect of dietary several supplemental probiotics on performance and intestinal microflora of Lohmann brown laying hens from 68 to 80 weeks. Basal diets based on corn and soybean meal contained 18.0% CP and 2,720㎉/kg ME. Bacillus subtilis, Lactobacillus salvarius isolated from piglet(LSP) were fed at the level of 0.1 and 0.2% in a one way design. There were four replicates of 40 hens each per treatment. Egg production, feed intake, feed conversion ratio(FCR), eggshell quality were measured at every four weeks and intestinal microflora were examined at the end of experiment. Egg production of bird fed 0.2% individual probiotics was significantly higher than that of control(P 0.05). Birds fed the diet containing 0.2% LSC and LSP had significantly lower FCR than other treatments(P 0.05). However, egg weight of birds fed control and 0.2% BS diet showed higher than other treatments. Feed intake of 0.2% BS and 0.1% LSP treatment was significantly higher than other treatments, but was not consistency of all treatments(P 0.05). Eggshell breaking strength and thickness of hens fed probiotics tended to increase compared to that of control, but was not significantly different. Intestinal anaerobes, Lactobacillus spp. and yeast of hens fed all tested probiotics were significantly increased compared to those of control. The number of intestinal E. coli of all probiotics treatments except 0.1% LSP tended to decrease. Intestinal Lactobacillus spp. was increased significantly by 0.1% dietary LSC, whereas intestinal yeast showed significant increase in LSP treatments(P〈0.05). The results of this experiment indicated that feeding probiotics to laying hens improved the egg production, FCR and increased beneficial microflora.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.27 no.7
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• pp.1026-1034
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• 2014

This study was conducted to assess the effects of flaxseed oil and dried whitebait as a source of ${\omega}$-3 fatty acids (${\omega}$-3 FA), which could be used to produce eggs enriched with ${\omega}$-3 FA, and of fructo-oligosaccharide (FOS) as a source of prebiotics on performance of hens (commercial Hy-Line Brown laying hens), and FA composition, internal quality, and sensory characteristics of the eggs. Dietary FOS increased egg weight. The amounts of ${\alpha}$-linolenic (ALA), eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acids (DHA) in the eggs from the hens fed the flaxseed oil alone or flaxseed oil+dried whitebait diets were higher than those of the control. Hedonic scores for off-flavor, fishy flavor, buttery taste and overall acceptability of the eggs from the hens fed the diet containing flaxseed oil+dried whitebait were lower (p<0.05) than those of the control. Overall acceptability of the eggs from the hens fed the diet containing soybean oil+dried whitebait was lower (p<0.05) than that of the control. However, all the sensory attributes of the eggs from the hens fed the diet containing flaxseed oil, dried whitebait and FOS were not significantly different from those of the control. These results confirmed that flaxseed oil increases the ALA content in the eggs and a combination of flaxseed oil and dried whitebait increases EPA and DHA in the eggs. Of significance was that addition of FOS to the flaxseed oil+dried whitebait diet improves the sensory characteristics of the eggs enriched with ${\omega}$-3 FA.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.45 no.3
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• pp.183-191
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• 2018

The study was conducted to investigate the effect of dietary supplementation of Lactobacillus, medicinal plants extract, and essential oil on laying performance, cecal microflora, relative organic weight, leucocyte profiles in laying hens against Salmonella gallinarum. A total of 100 Hy-Line Brown laying hens of 65 weeks of age were assigned into 5 dietary treatments supplemented with no antibiotic (negative control), antibiotic (positive control), Lactobacillus 0.1% (LB), medicinal plants extract 100 ppm (MPE), herb extract 100 ppm (EO). After 7 days of treatment, the 20 hens in each treatment group were divided into challenge group (n=10) and non-challenge group (n=10) for oral administration of Salmonella gallinarums, and were maintained in the same dietary treatments for two additional weeks. Laying hens were selected 20 by each treatment, splitting up into oral Salmonella group and nontreated group. The feeding trial lasted for one weeks and Salmonella gallinarum was orally administered for two weeks. Egg production, egg weight, egg mass, and feed conversion ratio were calculated and cecal microflora, relative organ, and blood were collected at the end of experiment. Compared with the control, laying hens fed Lactobacillus, medical plant extract, and essential oil were not observed to change of laying performance. Salmonella count increased significantly when Salmonella gallinarum was orally administered (P<0.05) but coliform bacteria and Lactobacillus counts were not affected. The relative organs weight was not different in hens with oral administration of Salmonella gallinarum and also in hens fed Lactobacillus, medical plant extract, and essential oil. H/L ratio was not significantly different, but total leucocyte level was somewhat increased in the treatment with oral administration of Salmonella gallinarum and more leucocyte increased in laying hens fed Lactobacillus, medical plant extract, and essential oil than control.

• 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.24 no.7
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• pp.993-1000
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• 2011

The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential of fermented red ginseng extract (FRGE) as feed additive in broilers and laying hens. In broilers, 480 Arbor Acre male broilers were randomly allotted to 4 treatments with 6 replications per treatment and 20 chicks per pen. The experiment lasted 5 weeks and dietary treatments were as follows: i) CON, basal diet; ii) FRGE1, basal diet+1 g/kg fermented red ginseng extract; iii) FRGE2, basal diet+2 g/kg fermented red ginseng extract and iv) FRGE3 basal diet+4 g/kg fermented red ginseng extract. Throughout the experiment, no effects were observed (p>0.05) in performance in response to FRGE. At the end of the experiment, FRGE administration improved (p<0.05) the lymphocyte level compared with CON. The relative weight of bursa of fabricius and spleen were increased (p<0.05) by the inclusion of FRGE3. Besides, redness ($a^*$) value for the breast meat was higher (p<0.05) in FRGE1 and FRGE3 treatments than that in CON. In laying hens, 240 ISA brown layers at 35 weeks of age were used in this 8-week trial. Dietary treatments were the same as in the broilers trial with 10 replicates per treatment and 6 layers per replicate. During the entire experiment, there were no significant differences (p>0.05) in performance or egg quality among all the treatments. However, the layers fed diets supplemented with FRGE had higher lymphocyte level (p<0.05) compared with those fed CON. In conclusion, the dietary supplementation with FRGE did not influence performance but improved the lymphocyte level in both broilers and laying hens.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.323-328
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• 2006

An experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary betaine on egg production, estradiol, progesterone, and melatonin secretion in laying hens. Seventy two ISA-Brown laying hens were placed into individual cage and fed four different levels of betaine (0, 300, 600, 1,200 ppm) in diets for four weeks. Basal diets were mainly mixed with corn-soybean and contained 2,800 kcal/kg ME and 16% CP. Dietary supplementation of betaine showed significantly higher (p<0.05) egg weight and daily eggmass than controls, but did not have consistent influence on the egg production. The serum estradiol was statistically different in betaine treatments compared to that of control (p<0.05). No significant changes in serum progesterone concentrations were observed by the addition of betaine in diets. Serum melatonin concentrations also increased with betaine supplementation in diets (p<0.05). The results of this study indicate that the dietary betaine may contribute to increase daily eggmass, serum estradiol and melatonin concentration in laying hens.