Studies performed in vitro suggest that a novel 12 amino acid RF amide peptide, isolated from the quail hypothalamus, is a gonadotrophin inhibitory hormone (GnIH). The aim of the present study was to investigate this hypothesis in the domestic chicken. Injections of GnIH into nest-deprived incubating hens failed to depress the concentration of plasma luteinizing hormone (LH). Addition of GnIH t...

The poultry industry has an important roll to supply food production by livestock protein in developing countries including Iran. The major sections in poultry production in Iran consists of broiler and laying production, broiler and laying breeder production, hatchery and line breeder production. Commercial productions in Iran have changed more or less during 1999-2003. The number of farms for...

A lectin obtained from black turtle beans (BTB) was precipitated with IgA in chicken bile samples in various forms of agarose gel systems. Ouchterlony-type double-diffusion (ODD) precipitation patterns between the lectin, bile IgA, and heavy chain-specific antibody contained spurs of the type suggestive of partial immunologic identity. The immunoelectrophoresis precipitation patterns between th...

One of the most extraordinary results of selective breeding is the modern broiler chicken, whose phenotypic attributes reflect its genetic success. Unfortunately, leg health issues and poor walking ability are prevalent in the broiler population, with the exact aetiopathogenesis unknown. Here we present a biomechanical analysis of the gait dynamics of the modern broiler and its two pureline com...

Two unique chicken F(2) populations generated from a broiler breeder male line and 2 genetically distinct inbred (>99%) chicken lines (Leghorn and Fayoumi) were used for whole genome QTL analysis. Twelve phenotypic skeletal integrity traits (6 absolute and 6 relative traits) were measured or calculated, including bone mineral content, bone mineral density, tibia length, shank length, shank weig...

Two informative chicken F(2) populations based on crosses between a broiler breeder male line and dams from genetically distinct, highly inbred (>99%) chicken lines, the Leghorn G-B2 and Fayoumi M15.2, have been used for genome-wide linkage and QTL analysis. Phenotypic data on 12 body composition traits (breast muscle weight, breast muscle weight percentage, abdominal fat weight, abdominal fat ...

A free-range broiler breeder flock was studied in order to determine the natural patterns of Campylobacter colonization over a period of 63 weeks. Campylobacter sequence types (STs) were not mutually exclusive and on average colonized only 17.7% of the birds tested at any time. Campylobacter STs typically reached a peak in prevalence upon initial detection in the flock before tailing off, altho...

Primary data were generated from field surveys conducted with the aid of questionnaires, personal interviews, field measurements and conversation between May and August, 2005 on the feeding management practices of 90 smaller holder turkey farmers in Imo State. All of the farmers fed their turkeys with commercial chicken feeds. Fifty (50.00%) of the farmers used chicken layer rations for their b...

Two experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of male broiler breeder feed intake on broiler progeny performance. In experiment 1, a low cumulative nutrition program supplied 29,580 kcal of ME and 1,470 g of CP, whereas a high cumulative nutrition program supplied 33,500 kcal of ME and 1,730 g of CP to photostimulation at 21 wk of age. Two diets (HiDiet and LoDiet) were formulated, and...

Campylobacter successfully colonizes broiler chickens, but little is known about the longer term natural history of colonization, since most flocks are slaughtered at an immature age. In this study, the prevalence and genetic diversity of Campylobacter colonizing a single free-range broiler breeder flock was investigated over the course of a year. The age of the flock was the most important fac...