Морфометрическое исследование репродуктивных органов японских перепелов: эффект влияния экстракта ромашки (Matricaria recutita L.)

Abstract

The high egg production and fast growth of the Japanese quail attracts a lot of attention to quail farming. This is ensured by the reproductive system of quails, which allows you to purposefully influence their productivity. However, the intensive feeding and rearing systems recently used in commercial quail farming are detrimental to the health of quails. The use of medicinal plants as effective natural growth stimulants can solve this problem, since this direction has found wide application in animal husbandry. This study is intended to determine the effect of an aqueous extract of chamomile on the reproductive organs of the Estonian Japanese quail breed (testes in males and ovaries in females). 40 Japanese quails (experiment-20 and control-20) took part in the experiment, the experimental group from the age of two weeks was fed this chamomile extract for four weeks (chamomile extract 3 ml/l together with drinking water). The results of the study showed that in the chamomile extract the total content of phenols is 108.92 µg/ml, the total content of flavonoids is 66.41 units. mol/ml, and the total antioxidant capacity is 1.77 ng/ml. Chamomile extract increased body weight, absolute and relative weight of reproductive organs, linear dimensions and shape index. Quail testes react especially effectively to chamomile extract, as for quail ovaries, no noticeable differences in their morphology were found.