Effects of including different levels of equal mix of soybean and flaxseed oils in Japanese quail diets on the growth, carcass quality, and blood biomarkers

Mohamed E Abd El-Hack; Ahmed K Aldhalmi; Adel I Attia; Zenat A Ibrahem; Garsa Alshehry; Mohamed Loutfi; Ahmed A Elolimy; Mohamed S El-Kholy

doi:10.1016/j.psj.2024.104446

Effects of including different levels of equal mix of soybean and flaxseed oils in Japanese quail diets on the growth, carcass quality, and blood biomarkers

Poult Sci. 2024 Oct 28;103(12):104446. doi: 10.1016/j.psj.2024.104446. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Mohamed E Abd El-Hack¹, Ahmed K Aldhalmi², Adel I Attia¹, Zenat A Ibrahem¹, Garsa Alshehry³, Mohamed Loutfi⁴, Ahmed A Elolimy⁵, Mohamed S El-Kholy¹

Affiliations

¹ Poultry Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Zagazig University, Zagazig 44511, Egypt.
² College of Pharmacy, Al- Mustaqbal University, 51001 Babylon, Iraq.
³ Department of Food Science and Nutrition, College of Sciences, Taif University, Taif 21944, Saudi Arabia.
⁴ Animal Production Research Institute, Agriculture Research Center, Dokki, Giza 12618, Egypt.
⁵ Department of Integrative Agriculture, College of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain P.O. Box 15551, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; Animal Production Department, National Research Centre, Dokki, 12622, Giza, Egypt. Electronic address: elolimy@uaeu.ac.ae.

PMID: 39520756
DOI: 10.1016/j.psj.2024.104446

Abstract

Corn, the primary ingredient in modern poultry feeds, contains high levels of ω-6 fatty acids but lacks sufficient ω-3 fatty acids, creating an imbalance. Maintaining a balance between ω-6 and ω-3 fatty acids in poultry diets is crucial due to their competition. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of incorporating different concentrations of an equal mix of soybean oil (SO) and flaxseed oil (FO) into quail diets on growth performance, carcass quality, and blood biochemistry. One-week-old Japanese quail birds (n = 200) were randomly assigned to four dietary groups, each comprising five replicates with 10 chicks per replicate. Four isonitrogenous/isocaloric basal diets were formulated. Group 1 (control) received a basal diet without SO or FO, while Groups 2-4 received basal diets supplemented with an equal mix of SO+FO at levels of 1.0 %, 1.5 %, and 2.0 %, respectively. The inclusion of oil mixes significantly increased body weight (BW) at five weeks and daily weight gain (DWG) during weeks 3-5 and 1-5. The feed conversion ratio (FCR) improved with the addition of oil mixes throughout the trial period. Supplementing quail diets with oil mixes resulted in reduced serum total cholesterol (TC) and LDL cholesterol, elevated serum HDL cholesterol, and no significant effect on triglycerides (TG) and VLDL cholesterol levels. Quails fed oil-supplemented diets showed lower serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and creatinine levels, while urea and uric acid were significantly affected. Birds fed diets with oil mixes also had increased serum concentrations of immunoglobulin G (IgY), immunoglobulin M (IgM), and superoxide dismutase (SOD). However, serum immunoglobulin A (IgA), malondialdehyde (MDA), and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) levels did not significantly change across experimental groups. Overall, adding up to 2 % of the SO and FO mix in growing quail feeds improved growth performance, blood lipid profile, liver and kidney function markers, immune response, and antioxidant defense. The highest level of oil mix (2 %) yielded the most beneficial effects.

Keywords: Blood biomarkers; Carcass; Growth; Quails; Soybean and flaxseed oils.