Effect of flaxseed on the fatty acid profile of egg yolk and antioxidant status of their neonatal offspring in Huoyan geese

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of geese's maternal diet supplemented with flaxseed on the fatty acid profiles of egg yolks and the antioxidant status of their offspring. A total of 288 female Huoyan geese (42 weeks old) were randomly allotted to four experimental groups in this 56-day experiment and fed on diets containing flaxseed at 0% (control), 5%, 10% and 15%, respectively. There were nine replicate pens per treatment, with eight geese per replicate pen. The concentration of α-linolenic acid (linear, P<0.01), EPA (20:5n-3; linear, P<0.01), DHA (22:6n-3; quadratic, P=0.03) and n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) (linear, P<0.01) levels in the yolk lipids increased with increasing dietary flaxseed levels. Yolk palmitic acid (16:0, linear, P=0.05), saturated fatty acid (linear, P=0.04) level and total n-6/n-3 ratio (P<0.01) decreased in a linear fashion as dietary flaxseed levels increased. Increasing dietary flaxseed levels linearly decreased (P=0.01) the total cholesterol in egg yolks. After hatching, three 1-day-old gosling were selected randomly from each replicate to determine blood characteristics and liver antioxidant status. Aspartate aminotransferase activity (linear, P=0.03), total triglycerides (linear, P=0.02) and total cholesterol (linear, P=0.05) contents in blood linearly decreased as the levels of flaxseed increased. A linear dose response to maternal dietary flaxseed was detected for the activities of the goslings' liver enzymes catalase (linear, P=0.01), superoxide dismutase (linear, P<0.01) and glutathione peroxidase (linear, P<0.01). The malondialdehyde (quadratic, P=0.03) and alkaline phosphatase content in the livers of goslings decreased as flaxseed supplementation levels increased. In conclusion, the dietary addition of flaxseed up to 15%, in the maternal diet resulted in increased n-3 PUFA levels in egg yolks and improved the antioxidant status of offspring in a dose-dependent manner.