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Vitamin A economy of the developing chick embryo and of the freshly hatched chick
Insights
Developing chick embryos and newly hatched chicks require significant vitamin A for growth. Retinal, initially abundant, depletes during late incubation, and is absent in the liver post-hatching.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Developmental Biology
- Nutritional Science
Background:
- Vitamin A is essential for embryonic development and post-hatch growth.
- Understanding vitamin A metabolism is crucial for avian health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantify vitamin A (retinol, retinyl esters, retinal) changes during chick embryonic development and early post-hatch life.
- To determine the vitamin A requirements for embryonic growth and early chick development.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of retinol, retinyl esters, and retinal concentrations in developing chick embryos and newly hatched chicks.
- Quantification of vitamin A levels at various developmental stages.
Main Results:
- Embryonic development requires approximately 68 nmol of vitamin A.
- Newly hatched chicks need about 108 nmol of vitamin A during the first 7 days post-hatching.
- Retinal, initially high, diminishes in extra-embryonic tissues after day 17 and is undetectable in the liver up to day 7 post-hatch.
Conclusions:
- Chick embryos and newly hatched chicks have distinct vitamin A requirements.
- Retinal metabolism shifts significantly during late embryonic development and early post-hatch stages.
Abstract:
1. The changes in the net amounts of retinol, retinyl esters and retinal in both the developing chick embryo and the newly hatched chick were investigated. The embryo requires about 68nmol of the vitamin for its growth, whereas the baby chick requires about 108nmol during the first 7 days after hatching. 2. Retinal was present in the egg in fairly high concentrations at the beginning of the incubation but it virtually disappeared from the extra-embryonic tissue after day 17 of incubation. It was not found in the liver of the embryo or of the newly hatched chick up until day 7.