Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1 Department of Animal Science, Shahr-e-Qods Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
2 Animal Science Dept. Agriculture Faculty, IAU, Shahr-e-Qods, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of dietary palm oil levels on performance and egg quality in laying hens. Five hundred Hy-Line W-36 hens (30 to 42 wk of age) were assigned to a completely randomized design with 5 treatments and 4 replicates. Diets contained 0, 0.75, 1.5, 2.25, or 3% palm oil. Egg production was unaffected by dietary treatments, but egg weight was significantly greater in hens fed 1. 5% palm oil compared to the control (P<0.05). Diets with 3% palm oil improved egg mass, reduced feed intake, and lowered feed conversion ratio compared to the control (P<0.05). Among egg quality traits, Haugh unit and yolk color were significantly improved by dietary palm oil (P<0.05). Serum cholesterol concentration was significantly reduced in hens fed 3% palm oil (P<0.05). Among antioxidant enzymes (SOD, GPx, and CAT), only SOD activity was significantly increased in the 3% palm oil group (P<0.05). Liver weight and liver fat percentage were unaffected by treatments. Malondialdehyde (MDA) content in eggs stored for 0, 30, or 60 d was not affected by dietary treatments. Overall, dietary palm oil supplementation, particularly at 3%, enhanced egg mass and specific egg quality traits in laying hens.
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