Association of feed efficiency with organ characteristics and fatty liver haemorrhagic syndrome in laying hens

Doreen Onyinye Anene; Yeasmin Akter; Peter John Groves; Neil Horadagoda; Sonia Yun Liu; Amy Moss; Christine Hutchison; Cormac John O'Shea

doi:10.1038/s41598-023-30007-1

Association of feed efficiency with organ characteristics and fatty liver haemorrhagic syndrome in laying hens

Sci Rep. 2023 Apr 11;13(1):5872. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-30007-1.

Authors

Doreen Onyinye Anene¹, Yeasmin Akter², Peter John Groves³, Neil Horadagoda⁴, Sonia Yun Liu², Amy Moss⁵, Christine Hutchison⁶, Cormac John O'Shea^{7

8}

Affiliations

¹ School of Biosciences, Department of Animal Science, University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington Campus, Loughborough, LE512RD, UK.
² School of Life and Environmental Sciences (SOLES), Faculty of Science, University of Sydney, Camden, NSW, 2570, Australia.
³ Sydney School of Veterinary Science, Faculty of Science, Poultry Research Foundation, University of Sydney, Camden, NSW, 2570, Australia.
⁴ Sydney School of Veterinary Science, Faculty of Science, University Veterinary Teaching Hospital Camden, The University of Sydney, Camden, NSW, 2570, Australia.
⁵ School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, 82351, Australia.
⁶ School of Science, Western Sydney University, Hawkesbury Campus, Richmond, NSW, 2753, Australia.
⁷ School of Biosciences, Department of Animal Science, University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington Campus, Loughborough, LE512RD, UK. [email protected].
⁸ Department of Bioveterinary and Microbial Sciences, Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest-Athlone, Co Westmeath, N37 HD68, Ireland. [email protected].

Abstract

Poor feed efficiency (FE) in hens impacts body weight (BW) and may reflect suboptimal health. Fatty Liver Haemorrhagic Syndrome (FLHS) is mostly observed in laying hens and affects egg production and hen performance. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships of FE and BW with organ characteristics, liver composition and incidence of FLHS of 150 individually housed ISA Brown hens ranked on the basis of feed conversion ratio (FCR) attained from early lay. At 45 weeks, 10 birds per FE group (HFE-High feed efficient; MFE-medium feed efficient; LFE-low feed efficient) were randomly selected and euthanized. Hen BW was positively associated with feed intake and FCR. The HFE hens had a lower abdominal fat pad and liver weight compared to LFE hens. FLHS lesion score was higher (worse) in the LFE than HFE hen group and was moderately positively associated with BW and abdominal fat pad, but strongly positively associated with liver weight. Liver pathology of LFE hens showed hepatocytes with abnormal retention of lipids causing distended cytoplasmic vacuoles compared to the HFE hens. Hens which exhibited poorer FE in early lay had heavier abdominal fat pads, heavier, fatter livers and were more prone to FLHS.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Animals
Chickens*
Fatty Liver* / etiology
Female
Hemorrhage / complications

Supplementary concepts

Floating-harbor syndrome