Hakan Inci

Comparison of fattening performance, carcass characteristics, and egg quality characteristics of Japanese quails with different feather colors

The objective of this study was to compare fattening performance, carcass traits, and egg quality of Japanese quails with different feather colors (white, dark brown, golden, and wild-type). In the study, 360 one-day-old quail chicks with 4 different feather colors were used as animal material. Quails were fed ad libitum for 42 days to determine fattening performance and carcass traits. To determine egg traits, 48 hens from each group, in a total of 192, were selected and caged according to feather color. Eggs were collected for four consecutive weeks and egg quality characteristics were measured. Different feather colors had a significant effect on live weight, feed intake, feed conversion ratio, and carcass characteristics. Significant differences between the groups were detected for egg weight, specific gravity, shape index, shell weight, albumen weight, yolk weight, albumen index, and yolk index. Japanese quails with all four feather colors can be reared depending on the choice. However, due to lower feed conversion ratio, white-feathered quails may be preferred for meat production purposes. Color variations should be considered when selecting quails.

FATTY ACID AND METAL COMPOSITION OF THE SEEDS OF Lathyrus sativus VARIETIES

Among the grain legumes from the Old World, we may single out two species of the genus Lathyrus (L. sativus L. and L. cicera L.), one species of the genus Trigonella (T. foenum-graecum L.), and three species of the genus Vicia (V. ervilia (L). Willd., V. monanthos (L). Desf. and V. narbonensis L.) on account of their current state of marginalization [1]. Lathyrus genus, which is in Leguminosea, is large, with 187 species and subspecies [2]. The main centers of diversity in the genus are around the Mediterranean region, Asia Minor, North America, and temperate region of South America [3, 4]. The widespread use of legumes makes this food group an important source of lipid and fatty acids in animal and human nutrition. Some publications dealing with the total lipid and fatty acid composition are reviewed by a few researchers [5–7]. Metal ions, metal complexes, and vitamins are materials that play an important role in vital functions of organisms [8]. The objective of the present study was to determine the fatty acid and trace elements of the seeds of Lathyrus sativus L. varieties. In addition, during the course of this study, we aimed to characterize the seed fatty acids used by animals in the field, to establish the nutritional value, and to make contributions as to the renewable resources of FA and other chemical patterns in these crops. The results of the fatty acid analysis are shown in Table 1, and the trace elements ara shown in Table 2. The fatty acid composition of some Lathyrus varieties used as feed crops from the Fabaceae family showed different saturated and unsaturated fatty acid concentrations. The total unsaturated fatty acids (TUSFA) of the studied Lathyrus varieties were found to be between 63.54 and 72.45%. Oleic acid (18:1) of these varieties ranged from 17.91 to 22.46%. Linoleic acid of these varieties ranged from 39.61 to 43.18%. A number of studies suggest that the unsaturated fatty acid component of Fabaceae seed oils resembles each other, and oleic and linoleic acid (18:3) were the main components in seed oil [9]. Oleic and linoleic acid are the principal component acids (about 65% of the total fatty acids). The percentages of these two acids are inversely correlated – some of the legume oils are rich in linoleic acid, whereas in others oleic acid is present in larger amounts [10]. Linolenic acid was also detected in the seed oil of Lathyrus varieties, but at very low levels in all of the patterns when compared with linoleic and oleic acid. For edible purposes, oil should have a minimal amount of linolenic acid since it is commonly thought to be the prime constituent responsible for reversion to undesirable flavors in stored oils and in food products containing vegetable oils [10]. Total saturated fatty acids (TSFA) of the studied Lathyrus varieties were found between 27.54 and 36.18%. In terms of the saturated acid components of the seed oils, palmitic acid was found abundant. These results were supported by other studies [11]. Saturated acid components of the seed oils revealed that the low-molecular-weight acids caproic (6:0), caprylic (8:0), and capric (10:0) acids commonly occur in all the investigated varieties. There is some evidence that the rarer fatty acids, like nonprotein amino acids, may be harmful to animals eating the seeds 12. The concentrations of the elements in the seeds are presented in Table 2. All data are averages of three measurements on each sample. The levels of metals were calculated on g/g dry weight. Eight elements (Cu, Mn, Mo, Na, Zn, Fe, Mg, and B) were detected in the crop seeds in different amounts. Magnesium is a critical structural component of the chlorophyll molecule and is necessary for the function of plant enzymes to produce carbohydrates, sugars, and fats. The high quantity of potassium, magnesium, and calcium together with the quantity of sodium plus the content of the essential elements iron, manganese, zinc, and copper allow the seeds to be considered as excellent sources of bioelements [12].

Using juniper berry ( Juniperus communis ) as a supplement in Japanese quail diets

The present study was conducted to determine the effects of supplemented juniper berry (Juniperus communis) on fattening performance and some carcass traits of quails. A total of 150 one-day-old Japanese quail chicks were randomly divided into five groups (one control and four treated groups) with three replicates. Four different juniper berry levels (0.5, 1, 1.5, and 2%) and a control treatment (0%) were added to the diet. Juniper berry supplementation to the diets initiated at the end of the 1st week and sustained for seven weeks. Live weight, feed intake, and feed conversion ratio during the trial and some carcass traits after slaughter were determined. Juniper berry supplementation in the diet during seven weeks of growing period significantly increased body weight, cumulative feed intake, and feed conversion ratio of the treated groups. Carcass weight, carcass yield, and breast yield were also significantly increased by supplemented juniper berry. No significant difference was observed between viability of different groups. Supplementation of 0.5-1% juniper berry in quail diets has positive impacts on fattening performance and carcass traits.

Effects of Beak Trimming, Stocking Density and Sex on Carcass Yield, Carcass Components, Plasma Glucose and Triglyceride Levels in Large White Turkeys

This study was conducted to determine the effects of beak trimming, stocking density (D) and sex (S) on live weight (LW), carcass yield and its component, and plasma glucose (PG) and triglyceride levels in Large White turkeys. To accomplish this aims, totally 288 d old large white turkey chicks (144 in each sex) were used. Beaks of 77 male and female poults were trimmed when 8 d old with an electrical beak trimmer. The birds were fed by commercial turkey rasion. Experiment was designed as 2 × 2 × 2 factorial arrangement with 3 replications in each group. Beak trimming and stocking density did not affect live weight, carcass composition and its components. The higher LW and carcass weight observed in trimmed groups. As expected, male birds are heavier than female, and carcass percentage (CP) would be adverse. However, in this study, CP of male was higher in trimmed, in 0.25 m2/bird. (D) × sex (S) interaction had an effect on both CP and thigh weights (p<0.05). Significantly D × S was observed in LW, CP and PG. The weight of carcass and its some components were higher in male. S × D interaction had an effect on plasma glucose level (p<0.05). Triglyceride level was affected (p<0.05) by sex. Significant relationships were found between percentage of thighs (r=0.447, p<0.01) and percentage of breast (r=0.400, p<0.01). According to this study, it can be said that trimming is useful with density of 0.25 m2/bird in turkey fattening.

Determination of outlier in live-weight performance data of Japanese quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica) by Dfbeta and Dfbetas techniques

This study aimed to determine the outlier values in live-weight performance data of Japanese quails. Japanese quails were grown under the same conditions, and, after being divided according to gender, the live weight data of quails up to 56 days of age (7 weeks) was collected. For both male and females, measurements on 50 animals were done, and these values were measured over. For each week measurement, values were separately determined. In order to determine the outlier values in each measurement, DFBETA and DFBETAS criteria were used. In males, females, and in all the flock a high number of outlier values was found. However, more outliers were observed especially in females. Under the same conditions, in spite of the training, the potential environmental effects of the variability in females was originated to react more quickly than in males.

The Effect of Lentil-By Product on Growth Performance and Carcass Traits of Heavy White Turkeys

The subject of this study was to figure out the effects of lentil by product (LP) on growth performance and carcass traits of the white heavy turkeys. To accomplish this goal, a total of 210 day old big-6 turkey chicks were used. The birds were divided into 7 seven groups with 3 replicates. The 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th groups received 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 % lentil by product, respectively. All the diets were made as izonitrojenic and izocaloric. The highest live body weights of males and females were observed in the control group at the end of the 15th week, which was the time of slaughtering of females, however the differences between the control and the 2nd, 3rd and 4th groups were not significant (p>0.05). The same differences continued for males at the end of the 17th wk of age, which was the time of slaughtering of males. Similar results were observed in carcass traits, as well. The best FCR was noted in the control group and it was significantly (p<0.05) different than in the treatment groups. The lowest and highest feed intake was observed in the 7th and 3rd groups. No significant differences were observed between control and all treatment groups. As a result, it could be said that lentil by product could be added into turkey diets up to 15% with no negative effect on live body weight and carcass traits because there was no significant differences between control and treatment groups (5, 10,15 % LP).

Analysis of Variables Affecting Carcass Weight of White Turkeys by Regression Analysis Based on Factor Analysis Scores and Ridge Regression

In this study, the influence of carcass parts weights (thigh, breast, wing, back weight, gizzard, heart, and feet) on whole carcass weight of white turkeys (Big-6) was analyzed by regression analysis based on ridge regression and factor analysis scores. For this purpose, a total of 30 turkey carcasses of 15 males and 15 females with 17 weeks of age, were used. To determine the carcass weight (CW), thigh weight (TW), breast weight (BRW), wing weight (WW), back weight (BW), gizzard weight (GW), heart weight (HW), and feet weight (FW) were used. In the ridge regression model, since the Variance Inflation Factor (VIF) values of the variables were less than 10, the multicollinearity problem was eliminated. Furthermore, R2=0.988 was obtained in the ridge regression model. Since the eigenvalues of the two variables predicted by factor analysis scores were greater than 1, the model can be explained by two factors. The variance explained by two factors constitutes 88.80% of the total variance. The regression equation was statistically significant (p<0.01). In the regression equation, two factors obtained by using factor analysis scores were independent variables and standardized carcass weight was considered as dependent variable. In the regression model created by factor analysis scores, the Variance Inflation Factor values were 1 and R2=0.966. Both regression models were found to be suitable for predicting carcass weight of turkeys. However, the ridge regression method, which presented higher R2 value, has been shown to better explain the carcass weight.

Fatty Acid Compositions of the Seeds of Some Trifolium Species

The Mediterranean region is very rich in Trifolium species, particularly in Turkey where it is common and represented by 103 species [1]. The widespread use of legumes makes this food group an important source of lipid and fatty acids in animal and human nutrition. Some publications related to the total lipid and fatty acid composition have been reviewed by a few researchers [2–8]. An accurate assessment of the profile and percentage total fatty acids from fresh forage is crucial when studying the biohydrogenation of fatty acid from fresh plants [9]. After harvesting, loss of lipids in forages occurs due to the oxidation of unsaturated fatty acids through the activity of plant lipases [10] and lipoxygenases [11], decreasing the amount of unsaturated fatty acids [12]. The aim of the present study was to determine the fatty acid contents of the seeds of T. lappaceum, T. pilulare, T. compastre, T. resupinatum, and T. angustifolium species. The results of the fatty acid analysis are shown in Table 1. The fatty acid composition of some plants used as feed crops from Trifolium species showed different SFA and UFA concentrations. In all the Trifolium studied, linoleic acid was found to be the major component (35.89–68.28%). Linoleic acid was found in the greatest proportion in the seed oil. Among the species, superior linoleic acid content was observed in T. lappaceum (68.28%). The oleic acid content was at the highest level in T. pilulare (41.97%) but at the lowest level in T. resupinatum (13.38%) and T. compastre (16.78%). T. lappaceum and T. angustifolium did not contain any oleic acid. The linolenic acid content was at the highest level in T. angustifolium (12.72%) but at the lowest level in T. pilulare (2.57%). The seed oils of all the species were richer in linoleic acid than linolenic acid. In the study, palmitic acid and stearic acid were found to contain the highest amounts of SFAs. Their contents were observed to be from 16.32 to 20.47% and from 2.87 to 5.83%, respectively. The maximum contents were found in T. resupinatum, while the lowest levels were found in T. compastre as palmitic acid and stearic acid. The TSFA content of Trifolium species was between 19.21 and 27.66%. T. pilulare has the lowest level of saturated acid, while T. resupinatum has the highest amount of SFA (Table 1). However, the UFA concentration of Trifolium species was as high as those reported in other family members of Fabaceae [3, 13, 14], Lamiaceae [15], and Apiaceae [16]. In our study, UFAs largely predominated over SFAs. While the highest content of UFA (80.79%) was found in T. pilulare followed by T. compastre (77.70%), T. lappaceum (74.43%), and T. angustifolium (73.81%), the lowest values were found in T. resupinatum (72.34%). Bakoglu et al. [3] found UFA concentrations of 83.46 and 78.55% in Medicago sativa and Medicago lupiluna, respectively. We have used the biplot to compare Trifolium species on the basis of fatty acid compositions and to identify species or groups of Trifolium that are particularly promising in certain aspects [17]. The biplot displays 80% of information in the standardized data for the five Trifolium species for 14 fatty acids, which is partially presented in Table 1. Interpretation of the biplot also shows that T. pilulare has the highest concentration of oleic acid and TUSFA (Total unsaturated fatty acid). T. resupinatum has the highest levels of myristic acid and palmitic acid. T. compastre has the highest levels of pentadecanoic acid, palmitoleic acid, heptadecanoic acid, gadoleic acid, heneicosanoic acid, linoleic acid, and behenic acid. T. lappaceum and T. angustifolium has the highest contents of stearic acid, linolenic acid, arachidic acid, and TSFA.

Effect of Transient Treatment with Propylthiouracil on Some Reproduction Traits and Live Weight of Japanese Quails

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of transient treatment with propylthiouracil (PTU) on some reproduction traits and live weight of quails. The trial lasted 8 weeks. To accomplish this goal, 700 1-day-old quail chicks were used, randomly divided into 8 groups. PTU was added to feed by 0.1% and 0.5% /wt. The first 4 groups had 0.5% PTU at the age of 2-4, 4-6, 6-8 and 2-8 wk., respectively. The 5 th, 6 th and 7 th groups had 0.1% PTU at the age of 2-4, 4-6 and 6-8 wk., respectively, and the 8 th group was the control with no PTU. Quails were bled at 60 days of age. Then right and left testes were taken out and weighed. At the end of the trail, least square means of the live weight of the treatment groups were higher than the control (p<0.05). Similar results (p<0.05) were observed for testis weight, testis diameter and fertility rate. As a result, it can be said that the inclusion of PTU in quail rations positively affects the live weight and reproduction traits of quails.

Interpolation method for live weight estimation based on age in Japanese quails

The objective of this study was to demonstrate live weight estimation based on age by using Newton Interpolation method for male and female quails for seven weeks of fattening. A total of 138-day-old quail chicks were used in the study. The study demonstrated a 6th-degree polynomial interpolation for the function values obtained at seven equal intervals from 7 to 49 days. Live weight increase prediction was calculated for male and female quails between the 7th and 49th days using Newton Interpolation. Daily live weight increase for male and female quails based on observed live weights was determined. Female quails displayed more live weight increase after the 19th day compared with males. Average live weight increase in male quails was 3.81 g, and 4.63 g for females until the 49th day. The highest live weight increase was observed during the fourth week for all quails. Sum of squared errors and coefficient of determination (R2) for fit of the model were calculated and the F test was performed. F, sum of squared errors, and R2 obtained by Newton Interpolation for male quails and female quail were very large: 0 (approximately zero) and 0.999, respectively. The interpolation method is suitable for breeding studies.