Andrea Bócsai

Role of Glutathione Redox System on the T-2 Toxin Tolerance of Pheasant ( Phasianus colchicus )

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effects of different dietary concentrations of T-2 toxin on blood plasma protein content, lipid peroxidation and glutathione redox system of pheasant (Phasianus colchicus). A total of 320 one-day-old female pheasants were randomly assigned to four treatment groups fed with a diet contaminated with different concentrations of T-2 toxin (control, 4 mg/kg, 8 mg/kg and 16 mg/kg). Birds were sacrificed at early (12, 24 and 72 hr) and late (1, 2 and 3 weeks) stages of the experiment to demonstrate the effect of T-2 toxin on lipid peroxidation and glutathione redox status in different tissues. Feed refusal and impaired growth were observed with dose dependent manner. Lipid-peroxidation was not induced in the liver, while the glutathione redox system was activated partly in the liver, but primarily in the blood plasma. Glutathione peroxidase activity has changed parallel with reduced glutathione concentration in all tissues. Based on our results, pheasants seem to have higher tolerance to T-2 toxin than other avian species, and glutathione redox system might contribute in some extent to this higher tolerance, in particular against free-radical mediated oxidative damage of tissues, such as liver.

Some chemical and physical characteristics of farmed pheasant hens (Phasianus cholchicus) breast meat

Ring necked pheasant is the most significant game bird in Hungary. Around 300.000 pheasant harvested (hunted) annually and generally these birds are consumed by the hunters. As there are limited data on the quality of pheasant meat, in the present study we aimed to analyze some physical and chemical properties of it. At 20 weeks of age 63 pheasant hens were exterminated by cervical dislocation and meat, liver, spleen and heart samples were taken. The live weight of the birds was 1045±92g (870 to 1300g). The average weight of the liver, spleen and heart was 14.12±2.58, 0.47±0.13 and 4.30±0.49, respectively. The average drip loss was 5.90±2.38% (0.68±0.28g). As was expected the average protein content (26.2±0.7%) of the pheasant breasts was markedly higher than in broiler or turkey. The average fat content (0.4±0.2%) was similar to that in turkey. The unique chemical and physical properties of the pheasant meat make it suitable to fit in the human nutrition.