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PubMed1993

Effect of spray sanitising on hatching egg cuticle efficacy and hatchability.

1. Eggs from a broiler breeder flock were sanitised using a continuous spray sanitising machine. The effect of this treatment on the ability of the cuticle to resist water and bacterial penetration was investigated throughout the production cycle. 2. The volume of water taken up by eggs that had been sanitised was significantly (P < 0.001) greater than that taken up by the control eggs. The volume of water taken up by the sanitised eggs increased as the flock age increased, whereas water uptake was maximal for the control eggs at 42 weeks of age. 3. There was no correlation between water uptake values and shell thickness or egg weight for either the sanitised or control eggs. 4. Sanitised eggs tended to dominate the "poor cuticle quality" category at all flock ages, when a subjective assessment of cuticle quality was made using the stain Edicol Supra Pea Green. 5. Egg sanitising did not affect shell reflectance values, shell thickness or the percentage of cracked shells. 6. When flock age reached 49 weeks of age, the sanitising process significantly (P < 0.001) reduced hatchability.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Influence of probucol ((4,4'-isopropylidine dithio)-bis(2,6-di-t-butyl-phenol)) on egg yolk cholesterol content and performance of laying hens.

Addition of the hypocholesteremic agent Probucol ((4,4'-isopropylidine dithio)-bis(2,6-di-t-butyl-phenol)) to the diet of laying hens at up to 1% significantly reduced egg yolk cholesterol content (mg/g yolk) without impairment of rate of egg production, egg weight, shell strength, albumen quality, or other production related parameters. Dietary concentration of .1% Probucol significantly reduced yolk cholesterol within 2 weeks after feeding. Higher concentrations did not further reduce yolk cholesterol. Probucol at .025% reduced egg yolk cholesterol within 4 weeks after feeding, but after 8 weeks of feeding, eggs from hens fed .025% Probucol did not differ significantly in yolk cholesterol from those fed the basal unsupplemented diet. This suggests possible adaptation in cholesterol synthesis by the laying hen.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

Mutual mate choice in sticklebacks: attractive males choose big females, which lay big eggs.

Brighter red three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus, males have been shown to be preferred by females in the laboratory but in the field, these males did not receive more eggs. Instead, they had heavier eggs in their brood. We investigated the hypothesis that sexual selection for red coloration in male sticklebacks acts through mate choice by preferred males, who can afford to be choosy, for high-quality females which lay heavier eggs. We assume here that heavier eggs provide a direct fitness advantage. In simultaneous choice tests males were presented with two females differing in size. The number of zigzags directed to and the time spent orienting to each female were measured. After the test the females laid eggs, which we counted and weighed. Bigger (i.e. longer and heavier) females laid significantly more and heavier eggs than smaller females. For all 23 males pooled together, the preferred female was the bigger of the two in 17 cases, laid more eggs in 18 cases, but laid heavier eggs in only 13 cases. When bright and dull males were analysed separately, we found that bright but not dull males spent more time oriented to the bigger female, and to the female that laid more eggs. Females preferred by bright males tended to lay heavier eggs than nonpreferred females, although this result was not quite significant. We conclude that in nature this preference for bigger females results in brighter males receiving on average heavier eggs. Assuming higher survival of bigger offspring, we propose that this can explain how brightness can be sexually selected in spite of brighter males not receiving more eggs. Copyright 1998 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2002

Tuna fishmeal as a source of DHA for n-3 PUFA enrichment of pork, chicken, and eggs.

Enriching foods with long-chain n-3 PUFA (LC n-3 PUFA) is an important approach to increasing the dietary intake of these beneficial nutrients. Enrichment of meat and eggs can be achieved by adding flaxseed, fish oil, or fishmeal to pig or poultry feeds. However, utilization of these sources, particularly fishmeal, has been limited by concerns about adverse effects on sensory qualities. In this study, we evaluated the use of PorcOmega (POM), a stabilized tuna fishmeal formulation, as a source of DHA for enrichment of pork and poultry products. Pigs, broilers, and laying hens were fed rations containing varying levels of POM for varying time periods, and its impact on the LC n-3 PUFA content and sensory qualities of cooked meat and eggs was examined. Pork and chicken products, including chops, sausages, and eggs, with substantially increased (up to sevenfold) levels of LC n-3 PUFA (predominantly DHA) were achieved by including up to 10% POM in rations. The increases were retained after cooking. Some sensory deficits were noted when using higher levels of POM (exceeding 15% in meat and 10% in eggs). However, at modest rates of feeding (5-10% POM), palatable meat and eggs were obtained with worthwhile levels of enrichment. The fishmeal feeding strategy used in this study offers a viable means of producing a range of alternative dietary sources of LC n-3 PUFA.

Animal Feed↗
PubMed2003

Effects of turning duration during incubation on corticosterone and thyroid hormone levels, gas pressures in air cell, chick quality, and juvenile growth.

Two peaks of embryo mortality have been identified during incubation of chicken eggs (the first and the final phases of incubation), and both are linked to egg turning. Turning in the first week enables proper formation of extra-embryonic membrane and in the final week avoids embryo malpositioning. The hatchability of the eggs, however, may depend on physiological parameters (e.g., hormone levels or gas pressures) that turning may influence to ensure proper embryo development and survival. It is not clear how long turning should continue during this second phase to ensure these conditions, but it is general practice to turn eggs until 18 d. This study describes the effects of turning chicken eggs for different durations during the last days of incubation on embryo physiological parameters that may be linked to embryo survival, hatchability, and broiler posthatch performance. Cobb eggs were incubated for 21 d under standard incubation conditions but with varying turning durations. Eggs were turned until 12, 15, or 18 d and left in a horizontal position until transferred to hatcher baskets on the 19th day. Blood samples from embryos were analyzed for corticosterone at d 15, d 18, internal pipping (IP), and hatch. Triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4) were measured at IP and at hatch. Partial pressures of CO2 (pCO2) and O2 (PO2) in the air cell were measured at d 18 and at IP stage. Hatchability of fertile eggs, incubation duration, weights of 1-d-old chicks, chick quality, and their growth potential determined as absolute weight and relative growth (RG) to d 7 were recorded. Corticosterone levels increased in all treatments with embryo age until hatch, but there were no significant differences among treatments. Eggs turned until 18 d had higher pCO2 and lower PO2 at IP than those turned for 12 or 15 d. T3 and T4 were higher at IP in eggs turned for 18 d compared with the other two groups in which T3 and T4 were not different. T3/T4 ratio in 1-d-old chicks was also lower in eggs turned until 18 d. Incubation duration, and weights of 1-d-old chicks were similar for all treatments groups. Hatchability and percentage of high quality chicks were lower for eggs turned for 15 d compared to the 2 other groups, which were not different. However, 7-d-old weights and RG decreased with increasing duration of egg turning. We concluded that although turning until 18 d benefited hatchability and chick quality, it depressed potential posthatch performance of the chick to 7 d of age.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Effect of duration of fasting on postmolt laying hen performance.

Two experiments were conducted to examine the effects of varying length of feed withdrawal on postmolt laying hen performance. Commercial laying hens (65 wk of age) were fed continuously or fasted for 4 or 10 days in Experiment 1 and fed continuously or fasted for 4, 7, or 14 days in Experiment 2. Egg production performance was evaluated for 35 wk of production following initiation of fasting. Hen-day egg production (Weeks 1 to 35) and egg weight (Weeks 5 to 35) did not differ between treatments in Experiment 1; however, in Experiment 2, egg production was depressed for the 14-day fasted hens compared with the fed hens. Lower egg weight also occurred for the 14-day fasted hens compared with the fed, 4-, or 7-day fasted hens in Experiment 2. Egg yield (grams of egg per hen per day) for Weeks 5 to 35 was lower for fed hens versus the 4- or 10-day fasted groups in Experiment 1, but no treatment differences occurred in Experiment 2. Feed efficiency (grams of egg per gram of feed) for Weeks 5 to 13 was not affected by length of fasting in Experiment 1, but feed efficiency of hens fasted for 14 days was lower (P less than .05) than that of hens on other treatments in Experiment 2. Egg specific gravity was highest for hens fasted for 10 or 14 days and was lowest for fed hens, with egg specific gravity for hens fasted for 4 or 7 days being intermediate (P less than or equal to .05). The results indicated that fasting periods of less than 10 days may yield satisfactory egg production and egg weight but that eggshell quality may be enhanced by using fasting periods of 10 days or longer.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

A technique for the evaluation of sperm penetrating ability and quality of bovine semen processed in an extender made with Brackett-Oliphant medium and egg yolk.

Egg yolk-sodium citrate (EYC) semen extender was compared with an extender made of Brackett-Oliphant medium and egg yolk (BOEY). Ejaculates were divided into equal portions, processed and frozen. Semen was thawed and evaluated for quality. Additional semen was thawed, stained with Hoechst 33342 and the spermatozoa capacitated, after which they were co-incubated with zona-free hamster oocytes to determine their penetrating ability. Sperm penetration of non-compressed, unfixed oocytes was evaluated using an optical sectioning technique on a standard research microscope. Sperm penetration was considered successful if a fluorescing sperm head was observed within the living oocyte in a hanging drop of fertilization medium. There were small differences in percentage of secondary abnormalities and percentage of progressive motility immediately after thawing between spermatozoa extended in EYC or BOEY diluent. There were no differences due to by extender composition in percentage of spermatozoa with intact acrosomes or percent of progressively motile after a 3 h incubation at 37 degrees C, nor the percentage of spermatozoa with head abnormalities. While there were significant correlations between all seminal quality characteristics, no quality measurements were correlated to percentage of oocyte penetration. The new penetration evaluation method allowed for examination of the fertilized oocytes using fluorescent microscopy initially and again after re-incubation for further development.

Acrosome Reaction↗
PubMed1978

[A new method for testing the quality of food protein for maintenance metabolism. 1. Investigations into the amount of 15N excreted via the urine of 15N-labelled young rats fed various proteins].

Over a period of 7 days, 38 experimental rats were fed a casein diet with a supplementation of 6.6 mg 15N-excess (15N') in the form of ammonium acetate. From the 5th experimental day, groups of 4 or 5 rats each were fed, over 5 days, different protein carriers to meet the meintenance requirement (115 kcal/kg body weight 0.75). The 15N-excretion via the urine, in terms of % of N absorbed from the food protein, served as yardstick of protein quality under maintenance conditions. The least 15N-excretion rates were reciprocally relativated for this maximum value (reciprocal 15N excretion biological value). The least 15N-excretion values from the 2nd to the 5th experimental days allowed to establish the following order for protein quality under maintenance conditions: fish meal, casein, wheat, whole egg, soybean (assayprotein), yeast peas, gelatin. The very good quality of the wheat protein for the maintenance state is seen in relation with the high content of glutamic acid (33.5 g/16 g N) and aspartic acid (5.7 g/16 gN). The found lysine content of the wheat protein (3.1 g/16 g N) proved sufficient for maintenance conditions.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Effects of photostimulation at 18, 24 and 30 weeks of age on the productivity of female turkeys fed ad libitum or restricted until point of lay.

1. Turkey females were fed ad libitum or restricted from 6 weeks of age to achieve mean body weights of 0.6 of ad libitum fed birds on photostimulation at 18, 24 or 30 weeks of age. Body weight, food intake, egg production and hatchability were recorded to 54 weeks of age. 2. Restricted turkeys were fed ad libitum after first egg or 36 weeks of age. Food intake after 30 weeks of age averaged 170 g/bird/d and was similar for all treatments. At 54 weeks of age, restricted turkeys photostimulated at 24 and 30 weeks were not as heavy as turkeys photostimulated at 18 weeks and ad libitum fed turkeys. 3. A large proportion of restricted turkeys photostimulated at 18 weeks of age did not commence lay until 30 to 40 weeks and a significant number of restricted birds photostimulated at 24 weeks had short laying cycles. Restricted birds photostimulated at 30 weeks came into lay and showed similar persistency of lay to ad libitum fed turkeys. 4. Ad libitum fed turkeys laid 115.0, 122.0 and 101.0 and restricted turkeys 92.4, 99.5 and 103.4 eggs when photostimulated at 18, 24 and 30 weeks, respectively. The number of non-settable eggs was lower in restricted compared with ad libitum fed turkeys and declined with age at photostimulation. 5. Egg size at the end of the experiment was similar for ad libitum fed turkeys and restricted birds photostimulated at 18 weeks but was 2.3 g lower for restricted birds photostimulated at 24 and 30 weeks of age. 6. Hatchability was higher, and the proportion of second quality poults was lower with eggs from restricted turkeys. The mean numbers of poults hatched were 59.9, 75.1 and 66.0 for ad libitum fed and 71.7, 65.7 and 79.4 for restricted turkeys photostimulated at 18, 24 and 30 weeks of age.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1987

Ahemeral light-dark cycles and egg production parameters of ring-necked pheasants (Phasianus colchicus).

The effects of two ahemeral light-dark (L:D) cycles on ring-necked pheasant egg production were investigated in this experiment. Three groups of 36 female and 12 male 10-month-old birds were exposed to control 24-hr (14L:10D), ahemeral 22-hr (14L:8D), or ahemeral 26-hr (14L:12D) L:D cycle. Average percent hen-day egg production (HDEP) was 63.8 for hens exposed to ahemeral 26-hr L:D cycle compared with 55.6% HDEP for the controls. Although this was not significant (P less than .05). It suggests a trend for pheasants exposed to ahemeral L:D cycles to improve egg production. Ahemeral L:D cycles did not significantly (P greater than .05) affect egg mass, shell-less eggs, cracked eggs, egg hatchability, and embryonic mortality. Shell quality, measured by specific gravity and shell thickness, was significantly (P less than or equal to .05) reduced for eggs obtained from hens exposed to ahemeral 22-hr L:D cycle. Fertility of eggs from hens kept under ahemeral 26-hr L:D cycle was significantly (P less than or equal to .05) improved compared with fertility of eggs from controls (89.3 vs. 78.4). Results of this research suggest that long ahemeral L:D cycles do play a role in the improvement of pheasant egg production and egg fertility.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

A comparison between the hamster egg penetration test and the seminal parameters in men of infertile couples.

The zona-free hamster egg penetration test was performed on 74 random consecutive semen samples from men of infertile couples and on 7 men of proven fertility (semen donors). Of these 74 men, 31 had never before delivered a semen sample (Group I), while the remaining 43 had delivered samples before (Group II). The penetration rates were correlated with the parameters of the semen analysis. In Group I, the mean penetration rate was 59%, in Group II, 42%, and among the fertile donors, 52%. No strong correlation was found between hamster egg penetration rates and the various semen parameters. Only the proportion of motile spermatozoa in Group II correlated significantly with the egg penetration test (P less than .05). Differences in methodology make comparison with the results from different laboratories difficult. It is likely that the egg penetration test measures some separate quality of the spermatozoa that may not be clear from the routine semen analysis. The role of the hamster egg penetration test in the investigation of the causes of infertility should be evaluated further.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Genetic sexing strains of mediterranean fruit fly (Diptera: Tephritidae): quality in mass-reared temperature-sensitive lethal strains treated at high temperatures.

The high-temperature treatment of eggs of mass-reared tsl genetic sexing strains in Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann), during late embryogenesis (the low-high protocol) conserves more male flies than treatment during early embryogenesis. A tsl strain, AUSTRIA 6-97, was constructed to follow the fate of aneuploid individuals during male-only production. Aneuploid individuals are produced following segregation in the translocation heterozygous males, and they can survive to the pupal stage where they compromise quality because they do not eclose as adults. Hatching, emergence, and male fly production were quantified and the heat-treatment protocol was characterized. The low-high egg treatment conserves the number of euploid-balanced males, and there is a very low survival of aneuploid males. After heat treatment of eggs, at least 95% of the male pupae were euploid compared with only 71% from untreated eggs. The quality of euploid male pupae was diminished with successive daily collections, an effect previously attributed to aneuploid survivors. Reduced yield of euploid males from early heat treatments was the result of an emergence effect, in addition to a maternal effect. A third detrimental effect of heat was found, occurring after hatching and before pupation, that reduces the survivorship of euploid males. The low-high treatment protocol yielded more males, with a higher accuracy than other heat treatments. However, although it avoids both the maternal and emergence effects, the production of euploid males was 30% less than the potential production, implying that the low-high heat protocol for killing female embryos in tsl genetic sexing strains can be fine-tuned.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

Controlled ovarian hyperstimulation adversely affects implantation following in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer.

PURPOSE: Our purpose was to determine if controlled ovarian hyperstimulation adversely affects implantation. METHODS: A retrospective comparison of pregnancy rates (PRs) and implantation rates was made between oocyte recipients versus their donors, who shared half of the retrieved oocytes, and regular patients undergoing in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer (IVF-ET) who were not sharing eggs. RESULTS: Higher implantation rates (39.0 vs 22.5%; P < 0.05) were found in recipients compared to donors in the stimulated cycle. However, no differences were seen in PRs or implantation rates in frozen ET cycles. The data for standard IVF patients were almost-identical to those for donors. CONCLUSIONS: Superior implantation rates and PRs in oocyte recipients versus donors were not related to better oocyte quality for recipients because of egg sharing or to a better uterine environment because of similar results with frozen ET in all three groups. An adverse effect of the hyperstimulation regimen best explains the difference.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Comparison of preparation techniques of mixed samples (fungi-helminth eggs) for scanning electron microscopy by critical point drying.

We compared three preparation techniques for critical point drying of fungus Paecilomyces lilacinus (Thom) Samson with Toxocara canis (Werner) Johnston and Taenia hydatigena Linneo eggs by scanning electron microscopy. We evaluated filtration (first), centrifugation (second), and phytoplankton network (third) in critical point drying methods. The first and third methods were advantageous for T. canis eggs because they preserved the quantity and quality of samples to obtain better images definition. The best technique for T. hydatigena eggs was the addition of phytoplankton network in critical point drying which preserved these helminth eggs.

Animals↗
PubMed1984

Egg characteristics and production efficiency of dwarf (dw) White Leghorn hens divergently selected for body weight.

Egg characteristics, feed efficiency (egg mass/daily feed intake), and performance efficiency (egg mass/body weight) were studied in dwarf White Leghorns after four generations of selection for divergent body weight at 20 weeks of age. Sexual maturity and livability were not significantly different among high (H), low (L), or control (C) lines. Mean 20-week body weights for H, L, and C lines were 1.50 kg, .76 kg, and 1.02 kg, respectively. Daily feed intake, egg mass, egg weight, and yolk, albumen, and shell weights were significantly (P less than .05) different between H and L hens and were directly related to body weight. Percent yolk was greatest and percent yolk mottling and percent albumen were lowest in eggs from L hens. Percent shell was not significantly different among the lines. Albumen quality (Haugh units) was significantly better in eggs from H and L hens than from C hens. Percent hen-day egg production was not significantly different among lines. Feed efficiency was greatest in C hens with both C and L hens significantly more efficient than H hens. Performance efficiencies of C and L hens were significantly better than H hens throughout the experiment, and L hens were significantly more efficient than C hens during peak egg production. These results suggest that there may be minimum body weight requirements for efficient egg production.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Composite asymmetry as an indicator of quality in the beneficial wasp Trichogramma nr. brassicae (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae).

Trichogramma are egg parasitoids that are widely cultured for the control of moth pests in commercial insectaries. Stock quality is often maintained by releasing wasps from a mass culture in an area with target host eggs and initiating fresh stocks from parasitized eggs. Here we test if variability among individuals as measured by fluctuating asymmetry can be used as an additional method of quality control in Trichogramma nr. brassicae by comparing fluctuating asymmetry levels between a random sample of wasps before release and wasps that successfully reach host eggs. Although the asymmetry of individual traits was not associated with wasp fitness, a total asymmetry measure based on combining the uncorrelated asymmetries of nine traits did predict the ability of wasps to reach the eggs.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Unilateral intrauterine insemination with prostatic fluid-sensitized frozen caudal epididymal sperm in beagle dogs.

The effects of the absence or presence of prostatic fluid (PF) during cauda epididymal sperm retrieval were assessed as regards semen quality after freezing semen in egg yolk Tris-fructose citrate solution (EYT-FC). Epididymal spermatozoa from the left testis of each of 10 dogs was retrieved into PF, whereas that from the right testis into EYT-FC only. At sperm recovery, the only difference between the two groups was that the incidence of spermatozoa with cytoplasmic droplets (immature sperm) was lower in the PF group (P < 0.01). In contrast, after freezing-thawing, (mean +/- S.E.) sperm motility (32.0 +/- 1.4 versus 12.5 +/- 2.0%, P < 0.01) and viability (58.2 +/- 3.5 versus 41.8 +/- 5.6%, P < 0.05) were higher in the PF group than in the EYT-FC group, respectively. Furthermore, 25.6 +/- 2.7% spermatozoa in the PF group were still motile after being maintained at 20 degrees C for 6 h. The incidence of immature spermatozoa post-thaw was lower compared to that after recovery in the EYT-FC group (P < 0.01), but was still higher than that in the PF group (P < 0.05). Frozen-thawed spermatozoa (2 x 10(8)) were used for unilateral intrauterine AI. The conception rate of PF-unsensitized sperm was 20% (2/10), but that of PF-sensitized sperm was 80% (8/10; P < 0.01). Therefore, sperm recovered in PF and frozen-thawed were of good quality. Sensitization of epididymal sperm with PF before freezing clearly improved the conception rate to AI of spermatozoa derived from the cauda epididymus.

Acrosome↗