Developmental changes of skin quality from breast, back, and thigh of Pekin ducks from 1 to 6 weeks of age

Hao Li; Wenxuan Zheng; Shuo Xin; Ye Hui; Yijun Zhu; Xi Lin; Huaqi Zhang; Yongwen Zhu

doi:10.1016/j.psj.2024.104759

Developmental changes of skin quality from breast, back, and thigh of Pekin ducks from 1 to 6 weeks of age

Poult Sci. 2025 Jan 6;104(2):104759. doi: 10.1016/j.psj.2024.104759. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Hao Li¹, Wenxuan Zheng², Shuo Xin³, Ye Hui⁴, Yijun Zhu⁵, Xi Lin⁶, Huaqi Zhang⁷, Yongwen Zhu⁸

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Breeding, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Regulation, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510000, PR China. Electronic address: [email protected].
² State Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Breeding, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Regulation, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510000, PR China. Electronic address: [email protected].
³ State Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Breeding, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Regulation, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510000, PR China. Electronic address: [email protected].
⁴ State Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Breeding, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Regulation, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510000, PR China. Electronic address: [email protected].
⁵ Woman Biotechnology Co, Ltd, Guangzhou, 510000, PR China. Electronic address: [email protected].
⁶ Department of Animal Science, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA. Electronic address: [email protected].
⁷ Key Open Laboratory of Chinese Veterinary Medicine of State Ethnic Affairs Commission, Tongren Vocational and Technical College, Tongren, 554300, PR China. Electronic address: [email protected].
⁸ State Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Breeding, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Regulation, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510000, PR China. Electronic address: [email protected].

PMID: 39817987
DOI: 10.1016/j.psj.2024.104759

Abstract

Good skin quality not only improved carcass quality but also increased consumer demand for fresh poultry meat. This study aimed to investigate the developmental changes in skin growth and quality of Pekin ducks during 1-6 weeks of age. The skin samples were collected from the breast, back, and thigh tissues of six male ducks at the end of each week. The skin strength, skin thickness, and collagen content as well as the related gene expressions were determined for the evaluation of skin quality. The results showed that the body weight, absolute skin weight, areas, and density, epidermal and dermal thickness (breast and thigh), shearing force, piercing force (back and thigh), and collagen content in Pekin ducks increased linearly and quadratically with age, reaching a plateau at 5-6 weeks of age (P < 0.05). The mRNA expressions of IGF-1 and FGFR1 related to cell proliferation were highest in breast, back, and thigh of ducks at 3 weeks of age, while the mRNA expression of FGF14 and EGF associated with collagen synthesis reached maximum values at 5 weeks of age. Additionally, the mRNA expressions of IGF1R and FGFR2 were upregulated in breast and thigh skins of ducks at 1 week old and in back skin of ducks at 3 weeks old compared with birds at other weeks old (P < 0.05). In conclusion, the developmental pattern of skin growth and structure of Pekin ducks in a linear manner with increased age. The skin quality was increased in a quadratic manner, which was associated with the changes in mRNA expression of target genes related to cell proliferation and collagen synthesis.

Keywords: Collagen content; Pekin duck; Skin development; Skin quality.