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Summary
Low vitamin E intake in Japanese quail significantly reduced fertility and hatchability. Plasma tocopherol levels dropped, indicating deficiency, even without other clinical signs, proving inadequate dietary vitamin E for reproduction.
Area of Science:
- Avian nutrition
- Reproductive physiology
- Nutritional biochemistry
Background:
- Vitamin E is crucial for avian reproduction.
- Soybean meal-based diets can be low in vitamin E.
- Maintaining quail on deficient diets is a model for studying nutritional impacts.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the impact of a low vitamin E diet on Japanese quail reproduction.
- To measure plasma tocopherol and creatine phosphokinase levels in deficient quail.
- To determine the minimum dietary requirement of vitamin E for quail reproduction.
Main Methods:
- Japanese quail were fed a low vitamin E soybean meal diet for 35 weeks.
- Fertility and hatchability rates were monitored.
- Plasma levels of free tocopherol and creatine phosphokinase were analyzed.
Main Results:
- Fertile egg percentage decreased significantly after 20 weeks.
- Hatchability was severely depressed in deficient birds.
- Plasma free tocopherol was markedly reduced; plasma creatine phosphokinase remained unaffected.
Conclusions:
- A dietary vitamin E level of 2 IU/kg diet is inadequate for normal Japanese quail reproduction.
- Low vitamin E negatively impacts fertility and hatchability.
- Plasma tocopherol is a sensitive indicator of vitamin E status in quail.