Replacing maize with pearl millet in laying hens’ diets

Pearl millet grain could be considered as an alternative feed ingredient for poultry. In a 12 wks experiment, the performance of laying hens fed diets containing pearl millet were compared with those fed diets containing corn. Maize grain was replaced by pearl millet on an equal-weight at either 0, 25, 50, 75 or 100%. Results showed that use of 25, 50 and 75% of pearl millet in place of maize in the diet resulted in similar (P > 0.05) hen-day egg production, egg mass, egg weight, feed intake and feed conversion ratio to those of control group. Totally replacement of maize grain with pearl millet significantly (P < 0.05) reduced all production parameters. Egg quality parameters did not affect by using pearl millet in the diet. These results showed that maize grain can be replaced by pearl millet up to 75% in the diets of laying hens without any adverse effect on hen performance or egg quality.     

Feeding of Unground Pearl Millet to Laying Hens

The use of new varieties of pearl millet (PM) as an alternative feed ingredient for poultry has gained increased interest due to the favorable nutritional characteristics of this grain. However, its incorporation into poultry feeds has been limited because commercial availability of PM in the United States is currently low and also because many feed mills lack the capacity to store more than 1 ground grain. Previous studies have demonstrated the advantages of the inclusion of moderate levels of whole grains in poultry feeds. A series of 3 experiments was conducted to investigate whether unground PM would be a satisfactory feed ingredient for laying hens. In Experiment 1, diets containing 5, 10, 20, 30, and 40% unground PM were fed. At the end of a 7-d feeding period, it was determined that the percentage of whole seed disappearance was equal to or greater than 98% at all levels of inclusion. No significant differences in whole seed disappearance were detected among treatments, indicating that laying hens have the capacity to break down whole PM seeds. In Experiment 2, diets containing 0 or 15% inclusion of either ground or unground PM were fed to laying hens for a 7-d feeding period. Starch digestibility of the diets was determined to be >97% for all treatments. Significantly greater starch digestibility was observed in the hens fed the 15% unground PM as compared with the hens receiving the ground PM diet. In Experiment 3, after a 4-wk feeding period, it was determined that the inclusion of 10% unground PM does not have a negative or positive effect on feed consumption or egg production. These results indicate that PM is a satisfactory feed ingredient for laying hens that can be included in the unground form at moderate levels.     

Replacing corn with pearl millet (raw and sprouted) with and without enzyme in chickens' diet

An experiment was conducted to compare a commercial corn–soya bean meal diet with a pearl millet (raw and sprouted) diet containing less soya bean meal, alone or in combination with exogenous enzyme, on growth performance and ileal villus development of chicks. Two‐hundred‐and‐forty‐one‐day‐old male broilers (10/pen) were randomly allocated to one of the following dietary treatments: (i) a standard corn–soya bean meal control diet (CTL); (ii) a raw pearl millet‐soya bean meal diet (PM); (iii) a sprouted pearl millet‐soya bean meal diet (SPM); (iv) CTL + exogenous enzymes (CE); (v) PM + exogenous enzymes (PE); and (vi) SPM + exogenous enzymes (SPE) with four replicate pens/treatment. Body weight of birds at day 21 did not differ between those fed the CTL, and SPM and PE diets. In comparison with feeding broilers the CTL diet, feeding the PE and SPM diets caused significant decrease in feed intake, but with equivalent growth and feed efficiency. However, at day 21, feed conversion ratio did not differ between birds fed the CTL diet and those fed the PM, PE and SPM diets. At day 21, broilers fed the PM and PE diets had longer villi (p < 0.05) than those fed the CTL diet. At day 21, villi width was reduced (p < 0.05) by raw pearl millet supplementation than CTL diet. It is concluded that, in comparison with corn, broiler diets formulated with sprouted pearl millet or pearl millet with enzyme require less soya bean meal and can be used to improve growth performance traits and villus development.     

Utilisation of pearl millet (Pennisetum typhoides) for egg production

1. The performance of White Leghorn laying hens on diets providing pearl millet (Pennisetum typhoides) at 300 and 600 g/kg to replace maize, part per part, or "maize mix" isoenergetically and isonitrogenously in the first experiment and at 600 g/kg diet to replace maize in toto, part per part, in the second experiment were examined. In the first experiment, 3 groups of 12 laying hens were placed on each of the 5 dietary treatments for 3 x 28 d, whereas in the second experiment, each of the two diets was offered to 10 groups of 15 laying hens for 6 x 28 d. 2. Inclusion of pearl millet in the diet at the expense of maize, part per part, did not significantly influence hen-day egg production, feed intake, feed efficiency and body weight in either experiment. Incorporation of pearl millet isoenergetically at the expense of "maize mix" at any level, i.e. 300 g or 600 g/kg (Experiment 1), also did not influence hen-day egg production but at the end of periods 2 and 3 did result in decreased feed intakes with consequent improvements in feed efficiency. 3. Egg weight in general showed a tendency to improve with diets providing pearl millet at 600 g/kg. 4. Profits from egg sales over feed cost were directly proportional to the inclusion of pearl millet in the diet either at the expense of maize, part per part, or "maize mix" isoenergetically.     

Effects of exogenous enzymes in corn-based and Canadian pearl millet-based diets with reduced soybean meal on growth performance, intestinal nutrient digestibility, villus development, and selected microbial populations in broiler chickens

An experiment was conducted to compare a commercial corn-soybean meal diet with a pearl millet diet containing less soybean meal (-27%), alone or in combination with exogenous enzymes, on growth performance, jejunal villus development, ileal CP, and AA digestibility, and cecal microbial populations in broilers. One hundred sixty 1-d-old male Ross 508 broilers (5/cage) were randomly allocated to one of the following dietary treatments: 1) a standard corn-soybean meal control diet (CTL); 2) a pearl millet-soybean meal diet (PM); 3) CTL + exogenous enzymes (CE); and 4) PM + exogenous enzymes (PE) with 8 replicate cages/treatment. The PM and PE diets contained less soybean meal because of greater CP and AA contents of pearl millet. All diets were isonitrogenous and isocaloric. Body weight and feed intake were recorded weekly over 35 d. At d 21 and 35, 8 broilers per treatment were euthanized for sample collection and analyses. Gain-to-feed was greater (P < 0.01) for pearl millet- than corn-based diets. Apparent ileal digestibility (AID) of CP and most AA was similar between corn-based and pearl millet-based diets, and enzyme supplementation improved AID of CP (P < 0.01) and most AA at both d 21 and 35. However, for AID of some AA at d 21, the response to enzyme supplementation was less pronounced in broilers fed pearl millet-based diets than those fed corn-based diets (grain × enzyme, P ≤ 0.05). The villus was longer (P < 0.01) in broilers fed PM and PE than CTL and CE at d 35. Similarly, at d 35, lactobacilli loads were greater (P < 0.01) in broilers fed PM and PE than CTL and CE. It is concluded that, in comparison with corn, broiler diets formulated with pearl millet require less soybean meal and can be used to improve growth performance traits, intestinal lactobacilli populations, and villus development, whereas enzyme supplementation increases AID of CP and AA.     

Evaluation of Nutritional Equivalency of Corn Grain from DAS-Ø15Ø7-1 (Herculex* I) in the Diets of Laying Hens

Grain from transgenic corn line TC1507 (Herculex* I) from Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc. and Dow AgroSciences LLC, which expresses the Cry1F protein from Bacillus thuringiensis to provide protection from lepidopteran pests of corn, was compared with its isoline equivalent and 2 conventional corn strains in a 16-wk laying hen feeding trial. Egg production and production efficiency of hens fed the diet formulated with transgenic grain TC1507 were similar to those of hens fed diets formulated with isoline or nontransgenic conventional corns. Hens fed TC1507 had similar egg qualities as those fed nontransgenic grain diets. Diet × phase interactions were noted for Haugh unit and Roche color fan score. Hens fed conventional corn 2 had a poorer Haugh unit score compared with hens fed the other 3 diets. Conventional corn 1 had greater levels of xanthophylls compared with the other corn treatments, resulting in increased Roche color fan score for eggs produced by hens fed this diet. Overall, hens fed the transgenic Herculex* I corn grain containing the Cry1F protein performed as well as hens fed the isoline equivalent of Herculex* I and hens fed the conventional corn grains.     

青贮玉米籽实对蛋鸡生产性能、蛋品质和肠道内环境的影响

本试验旨在探讨青贮玉米籽实对蛋鸡生产性能、蛋品质和肠道内环境的影响.试验选用55周龄海兰褐蛋鸡200只,随机分成4组,每组5个重复,每个重复10只鸡.4组蛋鸡分别饲喂含0(对照组)、1％、2％和4％青贮玉米籽实的饲粮,试验期为7周.结果表明:与对照组相比,2％和4％青贮玉米籽实组产蛋率、平均日产蛋量、蛋壳颜色、哈夫单位均显著提高(P＜0.05),料蛋比显著降低(P＜0.05),盲肠和空肠中大肠杆菌数量显著降低(P＜0.05)、乳酸杆菌数量显著提高(P＜0.05);1％青贮玉米籽实组平均日产蛋量、哈夫单位、空肠与盲肠中乳酸杆菌数量显著提高(P＜0.05),空肠中大肠杆菌数量显著降低(P＜0.05);4％玉米籽实组空肠和盲肠pH显著降低(P＜0.05).以上结果提示,饲粮中添加适量青贮玉米籽实能够提高蛋鸡的生产性能和蛋品质,改善肠道内环境,综合各项指标可知,添加2％青贮玉米籽实效果最好.     

Energy content of select dietary supplemental lipids for broilers,turkeys, and laying hens

Energy is an expensive component of poultry diets with lipids providing a concentrated energy source to meet these needs. Three separate experiments with broilers (15 d of age), turkeys (15 d of age) and laying hens (60 wk of age) were conducted to determine the AME_n content of 10 lipids with varying fatty acid and free fatty acid concentrations and to compare these values to predicted values based on previously published equations. A corn-soybean meal (broilers and turkeys) or corn-soybean meal-distillers dried grains with solubles (layers) control diet was formulated with test diets created by mixing the control diet with 0, 3, 6, or 9% (broilers and turkeys) or 0, 2, 4, and 6% (laying hens) lipid. Experimental diets were fed over a 5-d acclimation period followed by a 48 h total excretion collection period with AME_n of the diets calculated based upon the GE, nitrogen, and titanium dioxide in the feed and excreta samples. The pen-mean AME_n of each diet was regressed on percentage lipid inclusion level using linear regression with the slope of the line representing the AME_n of each lipid source. As expected, the AME_n values varied widely among lipid sources and species, with broilers having a greater AME compared to turkeys and layers. In general, saturated fatty acids (C14:0, C16:0, and C18:0) were negatively correlated to AME_n while unsaturated fatty acids (namely C18:2) were positively correlated to AME_n. Consequently, the unsaturated: saturated ratio, the polyunsaturated fatty acids: saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids ratio, and iodine value tended to be positively related to AME_n. Compared to broilers and turkeys that were able to efficiently utilize energy from corn oil (purified and crude DDGS corn oil) relative to soybean oil, laying hen AME_n values for corn oils were reduced in comparison to soybean oil. These data indicate that energy values of lipid differ widely due to source and appear to differ relative to a particular species.     

Effects of Different Forced Molting Methods on Postmolt Production,Corticosterone Level,and Immune Response to Sheep Red Blood Cells in Laying Hens

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of different molting methods on postmolt production, plasma corticosterone levels, and antibody production to SRBC for the welfare of laying hens. This experiment was conducted with 120 IGH-type Brown laying hens (70 wk of age), randomly divided into 3 experimental groups. The hens in one group were fed a whole-grain barley diet during the first 10 d (WB diet). On d 11, hens consumed 100 g of layer diet/d until d 28. In the second group, hens were fed a Zn diet containing 10,000 mg/kg of Zn as ZnO for 10 d (Zn diet). Hens were then provided 100 g of a layer diet from d 11 to 28. In the third group, feed was withdrawn for 10 d, and on d 11 hens were fed a cracked corn diet ad libitum until d 28 (California method; CAL diet). Hens in all groups were returned to the layer diet ad libitum on d 29. Egg weight was lower in the Zn treatment than in the other treatments. Feed intake and plasma corticosterone levels were higher and antibody production was lower in the CAL treatment than in the WB and Zn groups. The FCR was better in the WB than in the Zn group. Mortality, egg production, and egg quality were not significantly different among the molting methods. As a result, the WB molting program was the best method for postmolt production among the programs examined.     

Strain Response of Laying Hens to Varying Dietary Energy Levels With and Without Avizyme Supplementation

The response of 4 strains of laying hens fed diets varying in ME with and without Avizyme 1500 (AVI) supplementation was evaluated in a factorial arrangement study. The strains of laying hens (Hy-Line W-36, Hy-Line Brown, Babcock B300, and Shaver White) were fed 3 diets: moderate ME (2,900 kcal/kg), low ME (2,810 kcal/kg), and low ME with AVI for 28 wk commencing at 22 wk of age. No significant effects of diet, strain, or their interaction on feed intake and BW change were observed. Lack of an effect on feed intake was surprising given the different levels of ME. It is hypothesized that the reduced dietary ME was not low enough to elicit a response. Of course, dietary level of ME did change caloric intake among hens, with hens fed moderate ME consuming more calories than those fed low ME with or without AVI. There was an interesting dietary ME × strain interaction effect on egg production (EP). Babcock B300 hens fed moderate ME and low ME with AVI had greater EP compared with the B300 hens fed low ME, whereas the Shaver White hens had a greater EP when fed a low-ME diet compared with feeding a moderate-ME diet or low-ME diet with AVI. Egg weight and egg mass were significantly affected by strain but not by diet ME. Hy-Line Brown and Babcock B300 hens laid eggs with greater weight and mass in contrast to Hy-Line W-36 or Shaver White. Hy-Line Brown eggs were the largest, whereas Shaver White had greatest egg-specific gravity. Strain significantly affected proportions of albumen vs. yolk in the egg. Across all strains, Hy-Line Brown had more albumen percentage, whereas Hy-Line W-36 had higher wet yolk and yolk solids percentages. The low-ME level fed to laying hens may have been too high to evoke an enzyme response to improve energy utilization by birds. This is important, because to obtain an economic benefit, producers would need to know the proper ME level to feed with the supplemental enzymes.     

海藻用作畜禽饲料的进一步研究

本项研究在调查我国海藻资源量,分析其化学成分的基础上,用40头生长肥育猪、800只产蛋鸡、3000只蛋鸭及3900只肉鸭做了共5次饲养试验以及生产应用观察。结果表明:海藻粉以适当比例加到饲粮中能改善饲粮适口性,增进采食量,并明显提高畜禽生产性能及繁殖能力。加入2％的海藻粉可使生长猪增重速度提高12％,使蛋黄含碘量增加10倍。海藻粉在畜禽饲粮中的用量以2—5％为宜。     

Whole pearl millet feeding does not impair performance and nutrient digestibility in 28-day-old broiler chickens

The effects of varying inclusion levels of whole grain millet in millet–soya bean-based diets on growth performance, gizzard development, digesta characteristics and nutrient digestion in broiler chicken were investigated. Starter (0–14 days) and grower (15–28 days) broiler chicken diets containing pearl millet at 500 and 540 g/kg diet, respectively, were formulated. The diets comprised of 0%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 80% and 100% of millet incorporated as whole grain. One-day-old unsexed Arbor Acres Plus chicks (n = 540) were allotted to the experimental diets in a completely randomized design with the diets and water provided ad libitum for 28 days. Each treatment was replicated seven times, and each replicate had 12 chicks. Results showed that daily live weight gain and feed conversion ratio of chickens on the whole millet grain diets compared favourably with chicken on the control in both starter and grower phases, while feed intake reduced quadratically (p < .05) with increased whole grain millet levels in the starter phase. Morphological and structural characteristics of the gizzard and small intestine and intestinal digesta pH and viscosity were also unaffected (p > .05) by whole grain millet inclusion levels. However, the weight of intact millet grain in gizzard increased linearly (p < .001) with whole grain millet inclusion in the diets. Dietary whole grain millet inclusion also consistently lowered (p < .05) jejunal and ileal maltase and sucrase activities, but did not influence (p > .05) pancreatic amylase activity. Ileal crude protein and starch digestibility increased, while ileal energy digestibility decreased significantly (p < .05) with whole grain millet inclusion. Whole grain millet inclusion in broiler starter and grower diets up to 500–540 g/kg did not negatively impact on broiler chicken performance.     

Performance and Egg Characteristics of Laying Hens Fed Diets Incorporated with Poultry By-Product and Feather Meals

The effects of poultry by-product meal (PBPM) and feather meal (FM) incorporated separately and in combination in the diet on laying hen performance and egg characteristics during postpeak production were determined. Bovans White strain laying hens, 42 wk of age, were fed diets with 0% PBPM and FM, 5% FM, 5% PBPM, or 4% FM + 4% PBPM. Egg production, feed intake, and egg mass were not significantly affected by dietary treatments, whereas egg weight and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were significantly affected. Egg weights of hens receiving 4% FM + 4% PBPM were significantly lower than those fed the control diet, whereas those fed 5% FM or 5% PBPM were intermediate. FCR was significantly improved by the diets containing 5% FM or 5% PBPM compared with the diet containing 4% FM + 4% PBPM. Dietary PBPM decreased Haugh units, but FM did not. Egg breaking strength, shell weight, and weights of albumen and yolk were not affected by treatments. The results suggested that FM or PBPM could be incorporated up to 5% singly or up to 8% in combination in layer diets but with possible detrimental effects on Haugh units, egg weight, and FCR.     

Effect of high moisture storage of pearl millet (Pennisetum typhoides) with or without feed enzymes on growth and nutrient utilization in broiler chickens

Effect of reconstitution of pearl millet with or without enzymes on its utilization in broiler chickens was studied. The pearl millet grains were reconstituted by adding water to raise the moisture level to 30%, followed by storage in sealed plastic buckets with or without feed enzymes (0.5 g/kg) for 21 days at room temperature (25°C). Subsequently, the grains were sun-dried to reduce the moisture content up to 10% to avoid mould growth. Nine dietary treatments were formulated incorporating pearl millet either raw with or without enzymes or reconstituted with or without enzymes in maize-soya based control diet replacing maize at 50 and 75% levels. The birds fed on diets containing enzyme reconstituted pearl millet accrued higher body weight than maize based control diet. Addition of enzymes to raw pearl-millet based diet improved the body weight gain significantly. The reconstitution of pearl millet with or without enzymes increased ( P  < 0.01) the dietary nitrogen corrected apparent metabolizable energy (AMEn) values and the highest improvement (6.11%) was recorded in diets containing pearl millet reconstituted with enzymes at 75% level of maize replacement. The percent nitrogen retention in pearl millet based diets was comparable to maize based control diet. It may be concluded that the supplementation of the feed enzymes or reconstitution of pearl millet may improve the utilization of pearl millet in broiler chickens.     

Withdrawal of zinc oxide-containing diets from mature, female domestic fowl: effects on laying performance and the weights of selected tissues

1. Two hundred and sixteen laying hens of two strains were given diets containing ZnO to provide 0, 0.5, 0.75, 1.00, 1.25, 1.50, 2.00, 3.00 or 4.00 g added Zn/kg. These diets were given ad libitum for 5 consecutive 28-d periods. All hens subsequently received the control diet with no added ZnO for 5 weeks. 2. Four hens from each treatment were killed 0, 1 and 5 weeks after substitution of the ZnO-supplemented diets by the control diet. 3. The adverse effects of the ZnO-containing diets on body weight, food intake, egg production, pancreas, gizzard, oviduct and ovary weights/kg body weight were reversed by removal of the ZnO from the diets. 4. Five weeks after withdrawal egg production of the group which had received the diet with the highest concentration of added ZnO was only 50% of that of the control birds. 5. The beneficial effect of the added ZnO on internal egg quality was not maintained after withdrawal of the ZnO-containing diets.     

An assessment of the optimal range of dietary sodium for inducing a pause in laying.

Laying hens were fed on a diet containing 0-9 g sodium/kg until 34 weeks of age, then groups were fed on diets containing 0-2, 0-3,0-4, 0-5, 0-6 or 0-9 g sodium/kg for 16 weeks before that containing 0-9 g sodium/kg was reintroduced for all birds. 2. Egg production and food consumption were depressed by the low-sodium diets in proportion to the dietary sodium content. 3. Birds receiving 0-3 to 0-6 g sodium/kg diet lost weight initially but subsequently gained weight; birds receiving 0-2 sodium/kg diet lost weight continouosly. 4. In birds receiving 0-2 g sodium/kg diet, the reproductive organs were completely regressed, whereas these organs resembled those of point-of-lay pullets in birds fed on 0-3 or 0-4 g sodium/kg. 5. When the control diet was reintroduced, birds which had received the low-sodium diets resumed normal egg production and food consumption and regained body weight. 6. The optimal range of dietary sodium for inducing a pause in egg laying is 0-3 to 0-4 g/kg.     

Effect of dietary defatted diatom biomass on egg production and quality of laying hens

Background： This study was to determine if feeding laying hens with defatted diatom microalgal biomass （DFA） from biofuel production affected their egg production and health status. Methods： Five replicates of 5 individually caged ISA Babcock White leghorn hens were fed 4 diets, including a corn-soybean meal control diet, a diet containing 7.5% DFA substituting for soybean meal, and diets containing 7.5% or 15% DFA substituting for corn and soybean meal. Body weights, feed intake, feed conversion ratio （FCR）, rate of egg production, egg size, egg mass, and several characteristics of eggs were determined at 4 and 8 wk. Venous blood was sampled at 4 and 8 wk for measurement of 5 biomarkers of health. Results： The15% DFA diet decreased （P 〈 0.05） feed intake, egg production, and plasma uric acid concentrations as compared with the control diet, but increased （P 〈 0.05） egg albumen weight and height compared with the 7.5% DFA diets. The two levels of DFA produced dose-dependent （P 〈 0.05） changes in three color measures of egg yolk, without affecting four hen plasma biochemical indicators of health. Conclusions： Feeding laying hens with 7.5% DFA in the corn-soybean meal diet for 8 wk had no adverse effect on their health, egg production, or egg quality, but 15% inclusion reduced feed intake, egg production, and efficiency of feed utilization.     

蛋鸡日粮中添加富硒酵母对鸡蛋中硒含量及分布的影响

试验选用产蛋率约为80%的罗曼褐蛋鸡35只,随机分为7组,进行为期30d的饲养试验。A组为对照组,饲以基础日粮,其余6组为试验组,B、C、D组在基础蛋鸡日粮中分别添加0.2mg/kg、0.5mg/kg、1mg/kg硒的亚硒酸钠,E、F、G组在基础蛋鸡日粮中分别添加0.2mg/kg、0.5mg/kg、1mg/kg硒的富硒酵母。试验过程中记录蛋鸡的生产性能,每隔7d从各试验组鸡所产的鸡蛋中任取3枚,测定鸡蛋中硒的含量,并于试验的第14、15天,28、29天从A、C、F组每组各取5枚鸡蛋分别测定蛋黄和蛋清的硒含量。结果显示,日粮中添加硒对蛋鸡生产性能无显著影响,能极显著提高鸡蛋中硒含量,并且硒主要存在蛋黄中,添加富硒酵母组蛋硒含量较亚硒酸钠组提高更为显著。     

Long-Term Feeding of Conjugated Linoleic Acid and Fish Oil to Laying Hens: Effects on Hepatic Histopathology,Egg Quality,and Lipid Components

The present study was conducted to investigate the effect of long-term feeding of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) and fish oil on egg quality characteristics, production performance, liver pathology, and egg fatty acid content of laying hens. Single Comb White Leghorn laying hens (n = 112), 21 wk old, were placed in cages and randomly assigned to 4 diets (28 hens/diet, 4 replicates of 7 hens) containing 3.0% yellow grease (control), 2.75% yellow grease + 0.25% CLA (YG-CLA), 2.5% yellow grease + 0.25% CLA + 0.25% fish oil (YG-CLA-FO), and 2.75% yellow grease + 0.25% fish oil (YG-FO). The experimental diets were fed for 12 mo. Eggs were collected daily for 12 mo. Feed consumption, hen-day egg production, and feed efficiency were monitored. At the end of the trial, hepatic tissue was collected for histopathology. No effect of diet was found on feed consumption, hen-day egg production, feed efficiency, egg weight, yolk weight, shell weight, or Haugh unit. The YG-CLA and YG-CLA-FO diets produced an increase in CLA and saturated fatty acids in the egg and liver tissue with a concomitant reduction in monounsaturated fatty acids (P < 0.05). Feeding YG-CLA-FO and YG-FO increased the n-3 fatty acids in egg yolk and liver of hens (P < 0.05). No difference was observed in the number of fat vacuoles in the liver tissue. The total fat content of hepatic and abdominal fat pads did not differ among treatments (P > 0.05). Regardless of the diet, as the hens aged, egg weight, yolk weight, and egg total fat increased, and shell weight decreased (P < 0.05). These data demonstrate that eggs with increased n-3 fatty acids and CLA can be generated by minor diet modifications without affecting the production performance or health of birds.     

Decreased egg production in commercial laying hens fed zearalenone- and deoxynivalenol-contaminated grain sorghum

In an experiment to determine the effect of corn vs. grain sorghum on performance of laying hens, egg production decreased significantly in the grain sorghum-fed hens in each of two trials starting 24 weeks after the trials began. Necropsy of chickens fed both diets revealed buccal ulceration at the ventral aspect of the oral cavity and squamous metaplasia of the esophageal glands and submaxillary salivary glands. Lesions were much more severe in the sorghum-fed birds than in the corn-fed birds. Analysis of the grain sorghum and corn revealed the presence of mycotoxins. Zearalenone and deoxynivalenol were present in the grain sorghum, and a lower amount of deoxynivalenol and a trace of aflatoxin B1 were found in the corn. Although mycotoxin levels were low, interaction between these mycotoxins and others may have decreased egg production.