Thigh Meat Quality Research Articles

Effects of dietary supplementation of 4-O-methyl-glucuronoarabinoxylan on growth performance, thigh meat quality and development of small intestine in female Partridge-Shank broilers

AbstractRecently, Echinacea purpurea and its extracts have gained much interest due to their improvement on meat quality, but little information is available on the application of the purified Echinacea purpurea polysaccharide (4-O-methyl-glucuronoarabinoxylan, 4OMG). Thus, this trial aimed at assessing the effects of dietary supplementation of 4OMG on growth performance, thigh meat quality and small intestine development of broilers. A total of 240 1-day-old female broiler chicks were randomly distributed to four groups with three replicates of 20 within each group. Each group received either 0, 15, 20 or 25 g 4OMG/kg DM of diet. During the entire experiment, broilers had ad libitum access to water and feed, and the feed intake was recorded daily. All broilers were weighed before and end of the experiment. For each group, three pens with a total of 20 broilers were randomly selected to slaughter after 30 days. Increasing dietary supplementation of 4OMG linearly increased final live weight and daily body weight gain (P = 0.013) of broilers, Gain-to-Feed ratio (P < 0.001), muscle pH (P = 0.024) and redness (P = 0.001), but decreased drip loss (P = 0.033), shear force value (P = 0.004) and hardness (P = 0.022) of the thigh meat. Broilers fed diet with higher 4OMG had greater weight index, villus height and ratio of villus height to crypt depth in both duodenum and jejunum. These results indicated that increasing dietary supplementation of 4OMG was beneficial for growth performance, meat quality and development of the small intestine of broilers.

Assessing Breast and Thigh Meat Quality and Color of Ducks Fed a Diet Comprising Pelleted Sipjeondaebo-Tang by Product

Assessing Breast and Thigh Meat Quality and Color of Ducks Fed a Diet Comprising Pelleted Sipjeondaebo-Tang by Product

Desirable effects of dietary 4-O-methyl-glucuronoarabinoxylan from the Echinacea plant on growth performance, thigh meat quality and development of small intestine in female Partridge-Shank broilers

In this trial we aimed to assess the effects of dietary supplementation of 4-O-methyl-glucuronoarabinoxylan (4OMG) on growth performance, thigh meat quality and small intestine development of female Partridge-Shank broilers. A total of 240 1-day-old female Partridge-Shank broilers were randomly distributed to four groups with three replicates of 20 within each group. Groups received either 0, 15, 20 or 25 g 4OMG/kg DM of diet. During the whole experiment of 60 days, broilers had ad libitum access to water and feed. At pen level, feed intake was recorded daily and broilers were weighed at the start and end of the experiment. For each group, three pens with a total of 20 broilers were randomly selected to determine the thigh meat quality and the small intestine development of broilers. Broilers fed diets with higher 4OMG had greater final liveweight (P = 0.004), daily bodyweight gain (P = 0.004) and gain-to-feed ratio (P < 0.001), muscle pH values (P = 0.031) and redness (P = 0.001), duodenal weight index (P = 0.042), jejunal (P = 0.043) and ileal length (P = 0.049), duodenal (P < 0.001) and ileal villus height (P = 0.008), but lower percentage of dead birds (P < 0.001), drip loss (P = 0.042) and shear force value (P = 0.043) of the thigh muscles. These results indicate that increasing dietary supplementation of 4OMG may improve growth performance and meat quality of female Partridge-Shank broilers through better development of small intestine.

Utilization of Poultry Slaughterhouses (PSh) Waste as a By-product of Protein Sources to Create the Environmental Friendly Livestock Systems in Makassar, South Sulawesi, Indonesia

Livestock waste is one of the important problems in a livestock farming system. Various efforts was needed to reduce waste production. The use of waste is one of solution in reducing waste production to create an environmentally friendly livestock farming system. Utilization of livestock waste from PSh as feed ingredients for alternative protein sources can reduce the cost of feed use. This has an impact on a more efficient livestock business. The feather from the poultry contains high protein compounds. The application of waste from the poultry feather as a source of animal feed to improve the quality of quail meat has not been widely reported. The aim of the study was to examine the effect of giving feather waste extract (FWE) on the quality of thigh meat (Bicep femoris) for quail. A total of 100 heads quails, male, were used as samples. A total of 4 types of FWE administration treatments have been applied. Four types of FWE treatment have been applied in this study, namely: (FA = 0%; FB = 1%; FC = 1.5% and FD = 2%). Each treatment unit was repeated 5 times with 5 heads quail samples/treatment. The results showed that the application of FWE at different levels had a significant effect (p<0.05) on cooking loss (CL) and shear force (SF) of thigh meat (Bicep femoris), whereas in water holding capacity (WHC) it did not show a significant effect (p>0.05). The value of the WHC of thigh meat (Biceps femoris) is in the range of 33.33±1.65%-42.07±5.01%, MSF of 0.40±0.05-0.93±0.18 kg/cm2 and CL of 6.10±2.70-19.90±4.51%. An application of 2% FWE in feed mixtures showed better meat quality of thigh meat (Bicep femoris). An application of FWE as a protein source for animal feed can be improve the environmental sustainability and create a more efficient livestock business.Keywords: Poultry slaughterhouse (PSh), By-product, Protein, Feather waste extract (FWE), Environmental friendly

Comparative effects of dietary organic, inorganic, and Nano-selenium complexes and rosemary essential oil on performance, meat quality and selenium deposition in muscles of broiler chickens

This study was carried out to evaluate the effects of dietary Se sources and rosemary essential oil (REO) on performance, meat quality, several blood biochemical and immune parameters and Se deposition in liver and muscles of broiler chickens. 600 one-day-old male broilers were used in a 2 × 5 factorial arrangement with two levels of REO (0 and 300 mg/kg of diet) and five sources of Se [without, and 0.3 mg/kg of Se in diet as sodium selenite, or selenomethionine (Se-Met), or Nano-selenomethionine (Nano-Se-Met) or Nano-Se-Max with ten treatments, each with five replicates. During d 0 to 42, the weight gain of birds fed diets containing REO+ Nano-Se-Met or only with Nano-Se-Met were higher than that of birds fed diets without REO and Se or diets without REO but with Se-Met. Birds fed diets containing REO + Nano-Se-Max had the best feed conversion ratio. Dietary REO resulted in a decrease in abdominal fat percentage and an increase in the length of the jejunum (P < 0.05). Dietary Nano-Se-Met supplementation with or without REO appeared to induce an improved immune system response (P < 0.05). After d 12 of storage in the refrigerator, the combination of REO + Se-Met, or REO + Nano-Se-Met, or Nano-Se-Met, Nano-Se-Max supplementations improved thigh meat quality (P < 0.05). Also, REO + Nano-Se-Met, or REO + sodium selenite, or Se-Met supplementations improved breast meat quality (P < 0.05). Diets without REO and Se increased pH value after the slaughter in the thigh meat (P < 0.05). The highest liver and breast muscles Se concentration was observed in birds fed diets supplemented with Nano-Se-Met (P < 0.05). Taken together, our data indicated that the concomitant addition of Se as Nano-Se and of REO in the diet of broilers improves feed conversion ratio, lipid oxidation values of meat, immune response system and concentration of Se in liver and breast muscles of broiler.

Effects of dietary supplementation of guanidino acetic acid on growth performance, thigh meat quality and development of small intestine in Partridge-Shank broilers

AbstractThe current experiment aimed at assessing the effects of dietary supplementation of guanidino acetic acid (GAA) on growth performance, thigh meat quality and development of small intestine in broilers. A total of 360 1-day-old female broiler chicks were distributed randomly to four groups of 90 birds each, and each group received GAA dosages of 0, 0.4, 0.8 and 1.2 g/kg of feed dry matter. During the whole experiment of 60 days, broilers hadad libitumaccess to water and feed and the feed intake was recorded daily. All broilers were weighed before and after the experiment, and 30 broilers of each group were selected randomly to slaughter at the end. Increasing dietary supplementation of GAA increased final live weight and daily body weight gain, gain-to-feed ratio, thigh muscle pH value and fibre diameter of broilers, but decreased daily feed intake, drip loss, cooking loss, shear force value, hardness, gumminess and chewiness of thigh meat. In addition, increasing supplementation of GAA quadratically increased duodenal, jejunal and ileal villus height and width and ratio of villus height to crypt depth, but decreased crypt depth. The results indicated that GAA as a feed additive may support better development of small intestine, thereby resulting in improvement of growth performance and meat quality of broilers.

Antioxidant effect of the guava byproduct in the diet of broilers in the starter phase

ABSTRACT This work aimed to investigate the antioxidant capacity of the guava agroindustrial waste as a functional additive in broiler feed to improve the performance and meat quality of boilers. The experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design, consisting of four treatments and six replicates with 12 birds. Treatments included different levels of guava byproduct in the feed: 0, 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5%. We evaluated the performance of broilers at 7 and 21 days old. At 21 days old, two birds from each experimental unit were euthanized for intestine histologic evaluation (duodenum, jejunum, and ileum) and breast and deboned thigh samples were collected for analyzes of pH, colorimetry (L*, a*, and b*), and thiobarbituric reactive substances (TBARS). The use of guava byproduct in the diet at 7 days old did not affect feed intake and feed conversion of the birds. However, the body weight and weight gain increased linearly with the inclusion of the byproduct. At 21 days old, the guava byproduct did not depress the performance of birds. There was no effect of treatments on villus height, crypt depth, and villus:crypt ratio of the duodenum and jejunum of the birds. The inclusion of guava byproduct resulted in lower crypt depth and linear increase in villus:crypt ratio of the ileum. There was no significant difference in pH and colorimetry of the breast and thigh. With increasing inclusion of byproduct, TBARS value was reduced to 0.72%, indicating greater lipid stability in thigh meat in this inclusion amount. Guava byproduct can be used as an alternative antioxidant additive in broiler feed because it does not depress the productive performance and improves thigh meat quality of boilers.

레몬과 크랜베리즙이 닭 다리육의 저장품질에 미치는 영향

레몬과 크랜베리즙이 닭 다리육의 저장품질에 미치는 영향

Early and 24 h post-mortem thigh (ilio tibialis) muscle metabolism and meat quality in two genetic types of turkeys and their reciprocal crosses, raised under semi-confined conditions

ABSTRACT1. The experiment was conducted in order to determine the effect of the direction of turkey crossing on quality traits of their thigh muscle.2. In total, 1358 turkeys of slow- (SG) and fast-growing (FG) lines as well as SF crosses (SG × FG) and FS crosses (FG × SG) were reared with access to free range to 21 weeks of age in the case of males and 15 weeks of age in the case of hens.3. After slaughter of 15 males and 15 hens from each genetic line, their thigh muscles were examined and the following traits were measured after 5-min, 45-min, 2-h and 24-h post-mortem: temperature, pH, glycogen content (G), lactate content (L) and electrical conductivity (EC). Quality attributes were evaluated based on chemical composition, water holding capacity, cooking loss (%) and colour.4. The rate of post-mortem changes in temperature, G, L and pH in muscles differed among the 4 lines of turkeys, with the highest metabolic rate determined for muscles of SG turkeys, followed by muscles of SF, FS and FG birds. A more beneficial muscle water holding capacity of both sexes of turkeys and better results of cooking loss in male muscles were found in SG and SF turkeys. The thigh muscles of the crosses were characterised by a higher content of protein and a lower content of fat compared to the muscles of FG turkeys, and in the case of the males also by a higher protein content compared to the muscles of SG birds.5. Owing to the faster post-mortem metabolism, better water holding capacity, lower cooking loss and fat content at a similar content of protein, the thigh muscles of SF crosses raised in the free range system represent a better quality of meat for consumers compared to the thigh muscles of FS turkeys.

Antioxidant status and thigh meat quality of broiler chickens fed diet supplemented with α-tocopherolacetate, pomegranate pomace and pomegranate pomace extract

The effects of supplementation with α-tocopherol acetate (α-Toc), pomegranate pomace extract (PPE) and pomegranate pomace (PP) into chicken feed on antioxidant status, oxidation susceptibility and quality of the thigh meat during refrigeration were investigated. During six weeks broiler chickens were fed eight dietary treatments, which included: control diet, α-tocopherol diet (200 mg kg−1), PPE diets (0.1, 0.2 and 0.3 g kg−1) and PP diets (1, 2 and 3 g kg−1). Feed efficiency was significantly improved by supplementing chickens fed diet with 0.2 g kg−1 PPE. Long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC PUFA) n-3 level was higher in the thigh of broilers fed with α-Toc and PPE diets (except 0.1 g kg−1) than in chickens fed control and PP diets (p < .05). Total phenolic content, lipid peroxidation level and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activity in the thigh meat were significantly improved when chickens were fed diets containing α-Toc and PPE (p < .05). Supplementation of different antioxidant preparations into diets had no influence on plasma superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase activities, in contrast, serum lipid peroxidation level was reduced in chickens fed diets supplemented with PPE (except 0.1 g kg−1) and α-Toc. In conclusion, the broiler thigh meat may be successfully enriched with LC PUFA n-3 and its antioxidant potential and quality characteristics may be improved by supplementing diets with 0.2 and 0.3 g kg−1 PPE. Moreover, the antioxidant potential of PPE supplementation was equal to that of α-tocopherol acetate in refrigerated meat.

Impact of maternal heat stress in conjunction with dietary zinc supplementation on hatchability, embryonic development, and growth performance in offspring broilers

The aim of this study was to investigate whether maternal dietary supplementations with different zinc (Zn) sources could reduce the deleterious effect of maternal heat stress on hatchability performance and progeny growth performance. A completely randomized design (n = 6) with 2 maternal environmental temperatures [normal 21 ± 1°C (NT) vs. high 32 ± 1°C (HT)] × 3 maternal dietary supplemental Zn levels [Zn-unsupplemented control diet (CON), the control diet + 110 mg of Zn/kg of diet as either inorganic ZnSO4 (iZn) or organic Zn with a moderate chelation strength (oZn)] was used. HT decreased (P < 0.05) fertility, hatchability, chick hatch weight, and embryonic survival. HT also decreased (P ≤ 0.05) progeny BW, ADG, and ADFI at one to 21, 22 to 28, and 29 to 42 d of age as well as breast muscle ratio and plasma aspartate aminotransferase and creatine kinase activities at 42 d of age. Maternal dietary Zn supplementation with either iZn or oZn increased (P < 0.004) Zn contents in yolk and liver, non-weak chick ratio, as well as progeny BW, ADFI, and survivability at one to 21 d of age. Notably, the addition of oZn increased (P < 0.05) hatchability and progeny thigh meat quality by reducing b* value. The progeny ADG at one to 21 d and 22 to 28 d of age and BW at 28 d of age from maternal NT were not affected (P > 0.46) by maternal dietary Zn supplementation, but the above 3 indices from HT-iZn (P < 0.05) and HT-oZn (P < 0.003) were higher than those from HT-CON. Our results indicate that maternal heat stress impairs hatching performance, embryonic development, and progeny growth performance, inducing metabolic changes, while supplementation of Zn in maternal diets regardless of Zn sources improved hatch chick quality and survivability of offspring and alleviated the negative effect of maternal heat stress on growth performance of offspring during the starter period. In addition, maternal dietary supplementation with the organic Zn improved hatchability and progeny meat quality.

&lt;b&gt;Effects of supplementing broiler diets with a combination of fermented red ginseng marc powder and red-koji on thigh meat quality of broiler chick during storage

We assessed the effects of supplementing broiler diets with a combination of fermented red ginseng marc powder and red-koji on thigh meat quality of broiler chick during storage. Broilers (n = 120) were randomly assigned to one of two groups: control or treatment with 1% fermented red ginseng marc combined with red-koji. There were four replicates per group, each comprising 15 birds (10 male and 5 female). Neither the dietary supplementation group nor the number of storage days had a significant (p > 0.05) effect on meat pH. However, TBARS, a measure of lipid oxidation, was significantly affected (p 0.05) on the lightness (L*) of meat in group after 1 and 7 day of storage (included T1 group), or redness (a*) of meat in group at 1 through 7 days of storage, whereas the yellowness (b*) of meat in both groups increased significantly (p < 0.05) with an increase in storage duration. Our results suggest that supplementing broiler diets with fermented red ginseng marc combined red-koji powder does not affect meat color, even after storage. We conclude that dietary supplementation with 1% fermented red ginseng powder combined with red-koji can reduce lipid oxidation in broiler thigh meat after 7 days of storage.

Effects of the Dietary Supplementation of Sucupira (Pterodon Emarginatus Vog.) and Copaiba (Copaifera Langsdorffii) Resinoils on Chicken Breast and Thigh Meat Quality and Oxidative Stability

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the addition of the oil resins ofsucupira (Pterodon emarginatus Vog.) and copaiba (Copaifera langsdorffii) to broiler diets on chicken meat composition, quality, and lipid peroxidation. 350 one-d-old broiler chicks were submitted to seven treatments, consisting of the diets supplemented with copaiba (COP) or sucupira (SUC) resin oils at three different concentrations (500, 900, and 1300 ppm) plus a negative control diet (CONT). At 37 days of age, 10 birds per treatment were selected according to the average weight of the experimental unit and slaughtered to collect breast and thigh meat, which was stored at 4°C for 24 hours to evaluate pH, color (L*, a*, b*), cooking weight loss (CWL), and shear force (SF). Raw meat was vacuum packed and stored frozen until lipid peroxidation analysis. Meat samples were pooled to prepare pre-cooked meatballs (30 ± 0.5g), stored under refrigeration (eight days), and analyzed every two days for TBARS concentration. Results were analyzed using the PROC GLM and MIXED procedures (SAS statistical software). Plant oils increased (p<0.05) breast meat humidity (HU) and crude protein (CP) levels and reduced (p<0.05) total lipid (TLC) and ash (AS) levels when compared with the CONT treatment. Plant oils increased (p<0.05) thigh meat HU when compared with the CONT. High COP dietary levels reduced (p<0.05) breast meat CWL, and increased (p<0.05) thigh meat L* values when compared to CONT, except for SUC500 and SUC900. The dietary inclusion of plant oil resins showed a pro-oxidant effect (p<0.01) on breast meat when compared with the CONT. Low SUC dietary supplementation levels significantly reduced (p<0.01) the concentration of secondary oxidation products in thigh meat.

Vitamin C prevents the effects of high rearing temperatures on the quality of broiler thigh meat

We investigated the effects of incubation temperatures and vitamin C injections into eggs (treatments: 37.5ºC, 39ºC, 39ºC+vitamin C) on resultant chick pectoralis major and sartorius muscle fiber hypertrophy, as well as their effects on the quality of breast and over-thigh meat of broilers reared under cold, control, or hot temperatures. Incubation at 39ºC increased the shear force and reduced meat redness in breast meat (P < 0.05). Vitamin C prevented these high temperature incubation effects [shear force (kgf cm−2): 37.5ºC = 2.34, 39ºC = 2.79, 39ºC+vitamin C = 2.44; redness: 37.5ºC = 2.64, 39ºC = 1.90, 39ºC+vitamin C = 2.30], but reduced water content (37.5ºC = 74.81%, 39ºC = 74.53%, 39ºC+vitamin C = 69.39%) (P < 0.05). Cold rearing temperatures increased breast meat redness (a*: cold = 2.78, control = 2.12, hot = 1.98), while hot rearing temperatures reduced the muscle fiber area (cold = 5.413 μm2, control = 5.612 μm2, hot = 4.448 μm2) (P < 0.05) without altering meat quality (P > 0.05). Hot rearing temperatures increased the cooking loss (cold = 30.10%, control = 33.66%, hot = 37.01%), shear force (cold = 3.05 kgf cm−2, control = 3.43 kgf cm−2, hot = 4.29 kgf cm−2) and redness (a*: cold = 4.63, control = 3.55, hot = 3.20) in the over-thigh meat of broilers from eggs incubated at 37.5ºC, increasing the area of muscle fibers, while cold rearing temperatures diminished cooking loss and shear force, reducing the muscle fiber area (P < 0.05). Incubation at 39ºC and 39ºC+vitamin C prevented the effects of hot and cold rearing temperatures, by diminishing and increasing the muscle fiber area, respectively.

Effects of dietary supplementation of red ginseng marc and α-tocopherol on the growth performance and meat quality of broiler chicken

This study aimed to determine the effect of supplementation of broiler diets with red ginseng marc and α-tocopherol on the growth performance and meat quality during a 35-day feeding period. A total of 225 Hubbard male broiler chicks were fed diets supplemented with 0%, 1%, 2% and 3% red ginseng marc, or 2% red ginseng marc + 200 IU α-tocopherol kg(-1) and randomly allocated to five dietary groups (15 floor pens), so that each group had three replicates and 15 broilers per pen (0.09 m(2) per bird). There were no differences among the treated groups with regard to growth performance and proximate composition, except for mortality and crude fat in broilers. Serum cholesterol levels were lower in the chickens receiving diets supplemented with red ginseng marc and α-tocopherol than those in the control. With the exception of water-holding capacity or shear force values, increasing levels of red ginseng marc and a combination of red ginseng marc and α-tocopherol affected chicken thigh meat quality by decreasing the pH and thiobarbituric acid reactive substance and increasing the total phenol and DPPH-radical scavenging compared with those in the control. Broiler diets with increasing levels of red ginseng marc and the combination of red ginseng marc and α-tocopherol did not affect the color of thigh muscle, but the treatment significantly increased a* values. Supplementation of poultry diets with 3% red ginseng marc markedly reduced mortality and serum cholesterol levels and remarkably improved meat quality in broilers.

Effects of supplemental thyme extract (Thymus vulgaris L.) on growth performance, intestinal microbial populations, and meat quality in Japanese quails

The aim of the current study was to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation with thyme extract as growth promoter agent on growth performance, intestinal microbial populations, and thigh meat quality of Japanese quail. A total of one hundred eighty 1-day-old Japanese quails were randomly allocated to three treatments with four replicates per treatment and 15 quail chicks per pen. The dietary treatments consisted of basal control diet (CO) without any added compounds, virginiamycin (VM, 200 mg/kg), and thyme extract (TH, 100 mg/kg). Daily feed intake for each pen was recorded. The average body weight gain (BWG) and feed intake (FI) adjusted for mortality to 21 and 35 days of age were used to calculate the feed conversion ratio (FCR). At day 35, two birds per replicate were slaughtered for determination of intestinal weights and also for thigh meat quality. Supplementing VM significantly decreased the FCR of quails at day 35. The results showed that the count of lactobacillus bacteria increased in birds fed the TH diet compared to VM and CO treatments. Also, supplemental TH decreased the number of coliforms in the ileum compared to the CO diet. Japanese quails fed the TH diet had significantly lower 2-thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) than the VM and CO treatments. Water holding capacity (WHC) was significantly increased in quails fed the TH diet. In conclusion, TH can increase the number of beneficial bacteria (lactobacillus bacteria) and decrease harmful ones (coliforms). Also, TH has good effects on thigh meat quality as indicated by the decrease in TBARS and the increase in WHC, but it has not affected the growth performance.

Quality of breast and thigh meats when broilers are fed rations containing graded levels of sugar syrup

The dietary energy for broiler chicken is provided through the inclusion of cereal grains and vegetable oil in the ration. The cost of corn is increasing exponentially, whereas sugar syrup (SS) is available with reasonable cost. Sugar syrup can be used as a substitute for starch/grains and vegetable oil. No research has been reported on the effect of SS on broiler meat quality. In this study, Hubbard commercial broiler chicks were fed a control basal diet (corn-soy basal diet on an ad libitum basis) alone or with graded levels of SS. A completely randomized design with 3 replications (n = 3, treatments = 4 with 4 subsamples per treatment) were used to investigate the effect of replacing part of the corn and oil in broiler chicken rations with graded levels of SS (5, 10, and 15%) on breast and thigh meat quality (proximate analysis, cooking loss, instrumental color, and texture and sensory properties). Rations containing up to 15% SS had a slight effect on proximate composition of raw and cooked broiler breast and thigh meats. Cooking loss of thigh meat decreased significantly with increasing SS but increased significantly for breast meats. No significant differences were detected (P > 0.05) among breast or thigh meats fed rations with a different level of SS on all sensory properties, except that cooked thigh meat had a slightly harder texture. Overall, results suggest that feeding broilers with SS rations (up to 15%) produced high-quality breast and thigh meats with minimal differences.

Effects of dietary synbiotic and cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum) supplementation on growth performance and meat quality in Japanese quail

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation with cinnamon powder, cinnamon oil, and synbiotic as growth promoter agents on growth performance and thigh meat quality in Japanese quail. A total of 420 one-d-old Japanese quail were randomly allocated to seven treatments with four cages per treatment and 15 quail chicks per cage. The dietary treatments consisted of the basal control without any added compounds, 200mg virginiamycin/kg, 100 or 200mg cinnamon oil, 1 or 2g cinnamon powder/kg, and 500mg synbiotic/kg. Birds were provided feed and water ad libitum. Body weight and feed intake of quails were determined at d 0, 21, and 35, and feed conversion ratio was calculated. On d 35, two birds from each cage were slaughtered and the thighs were collected for meat quality measurements. Supplementing 200mg cinnamon oil/kg and virginiamycin increased body weight gain of quails at d 21–35 (P=0.003). Feeding 200mg cinnamon oil/kg and virginiamycin improved feed conversion ratio compared to control group at d 21–35 and 0–35 (P<0.05). Feed intake was not affected by dietary treatments. In this experiment, 2-thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances of Japanese quails fed 200mg cinnamon oil/kg was lower than the control, virginiamycin, and synbiotic treatments (P<0.001). Water holding capacity was increased in quail fed 200mg cinnamon oil/kg (P<0.05). Cooking loss, dripping loss, and pH of the meat were not affected by treatments. In conclusion, 200mg cinnamon oil/kg can be applied as an alternative to antibiotic for Japanese quail diets to maintain growth performance, and it can also improve meat quality.

Genetic polymorphism of the CAPN1 gene is associated with meat quality traits in Japanese quail

1. The objective of the study was to investigate the polymorphisms in two regions of the calpain 1 (CAPN1) gene and their association with breast and thigh meat quality in Japanese quail (ultimate pH (pHu), lightness, redness, yellowness, drip loss, thawing-cooking loss, water holding capacity and shear force, SF).2. Blood samples were collected randomly from 100 birds and DNA was extracted using a commercial kit. Genotypes were determined by PCR amplification followed by single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) analysis. The effect of CAPN1 genotypes on meat quality traits were analysed using a general linear model (GLM) procedure.3. Genotypes of the CAPN1 gene in the first region (217-bp) analysed were significantly associated with yellowness and SF. The TT genotype showed significantly higher yellowness and lower shear force (more tenderness) than CT and CC genotypes. Genotypes of the second region of the gene (intron 4, 800-bp) were significantly associated with pHu, redness and SF of the breast meat. The BB genotype showed significantly lower pHu and redness and higher SF (lower tenderness) than other genotypes.4. Information on polymorphisms of the CAPN1 gene will eventually provide useful information for improving meat quality of Japanese quail through marker-assisted selection.

Comparison of Meat Quality and Fatty Acid Profile in Slow-Growing Chicken Genotypes Fed Diets Supplemented with Origanum Vulgare or Melissa Officinalis Leaves Under the Organic System

This study was conducted to compare the meat quality and selected fatty acids profile of two different slow-growing broiler genotypes (Hubbard S757; S757 and Hubbard Grey Barred JA; GB-JA) fed diets supplemented with dry oregano (Origanum vulgare L., OV; 10 g/kg basal diets) or lemon balm leaves (Melissa officinalis L., MO; 10 g/kg basal diets) under organic housing system. It is concluded that slow-growing genotypes had no effect on L* parameter of the breast, thigh and abdominal fat meat quality. Two hundred and forty chicks were allocated randomly into 4 experimental groups according to a 2×2 factorial arrangement. Birds were raised until 98 days in order to achieve an acceptable market live weight. The b* colours of breast and thigh meat were significant different among genotypes and also a* colour of breast meat of GB-JA increased (P<0.05). Slow-growing female broilers produced a higher dry matter content and lower fat content of breast meat as compared with males. There were the higher concentrations of linoleic (C18:2n-6) acid and the lower concentrations of linolenic acid (C18:3n-3) in genotypes fed with supplemented dry oregano or lemon balm leaves diet. Sex affected total unsaturated fatty acids (UFA) composition, polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) and linoleic acid, were higher in slow growing males breast meat as compared with females breast meat. These results suggested that the slow-growing genotypes might had influenced the colour of breast and thigh meat, although overall meat quality was not affected under the organic system.