Adapting the feed, the animal and the feeding techniques to improve the efficiency and sustainability of monogastric livestock production systems
Adapting the feed, the animal and the feeding techniques to improve the efficiency and sustainability of monogastric livestock production systems

Serum color as a biomarker for indirect selection of digestive efficiency

Authors: 
Mignon-Grasteau S., Beauclercq S., Urvoix S., Le Bihan-Duval E.
Publication date: 
23 October 2019
Full title: 
Serum color as a biomarker for indirect selection of digestive efficiency
Publishing information: 
11th European symposium on Poultry Genetics, 23–25 October 2019, Prague, Czech Republic
Abstract: 

With the diversification of feedstuffs used in poultry diets, the relative importance of digestive efficiency (DE) in feed efficiency is becoming more important. Technologies as near infrared spectroscopy facilitated the measure of DE on a large number of animals, but sample preparation is still time consuming and the total collection of feces is ethically questionable as animals have to be reared in cage. Serum color, which has previously been found to differ between two lines of chickens selected for high (D+) or low (D-) digestive efficiency, could be used as a biomarker of DE for selection.
Digestive efficiency assessed by AMEn and serum color at 3 weeks have thus been measured on 417 chickens from the D+/D- lines. Spectra of serum color have been compared between the two lines for wavelengths every 2 nm between 300 and 572 nm. Genetic parameters of all traits have been estimated to detect whether serum color was heritable and genetically correlated with DE. Serum color was significantly yellower in D+ than in D- birds from 376 to 572 nm, the most significant differences were observed at 490-492 nm. Heritability of serum color was significantly different from 0 between 462 and 502 nm, with a maximum value of 0.31+0.09 at 492 nm. At this wavelength, genetic correlation with AMEn was high (0.84+0.28), thus indicating that serum color can be used as an indirect criterion of selection of DE. Further studies are now undertaken to confirm the interest of this criterion on other genotypes and diets.

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