Effect of eggshell temperature and oxygen concentration on survival rate and nutrient utilization in chicken embryos

Abstract

Environmental conditions during incubation such as temperature and O(2) concentration affect embryo development that may be associated with modifications in nutrient partitioning. Additionally, prenatal conditions can affect postnatal nutrient utilization. Using broiler chicken embryos, we studied the effects of eggshell temperature (EST; 37.8 or 38.9 degrees C) and O(2) (17, 21, or 25%) applied from d 7 until 19 of incubation in a 2 x 3 factorial design. Effects of these factors on embryonic survival, development, and nutrient utilization were assessed in the pre- and posthatch period. High EST reduced yolk-free body mass compared with normal EST (36.1 vs. 37.7 g), possibly through reduced incubation duration (479 vs. 487 h) and lower efficiency of protein utilization for growth (83.6 vs. 86.8%). Increasing O(2) increased yolk-free body mass (from 35.7 to 38.3 g) at 12 h after emergence from the eggshell, but differences were larger between the low and normal O(2) than between the normal and high O(2). This might be due to the lower efficiency of nutrient utilization for growth at low O(2). However, the effects of O(2) that were found at 12 h were less pronounced at 48 h posthatch. When O(2) was shifted to 21% for all treatments at d 19 of incubation, embryos incubated at low O(2) used nutrients more efficiently than those incubated at normal or high O(2). An additional negative effect on survival and chick development occurred when embryos were exposed to a combination of high EST and low O(2). Possible explanations include reduced nutrient availability for hatching, decreased body development to fulfill the energy-demanding hatching process, and higher incidence of malpositions. In conclusion, EST and O(2) during incubation affect nutrient utilization for growth, which may explain differences in survival and development. Embryos raised under suboptimal environmental conditions in the prenatal period may develop adaptive mechanisms that still continue in the posthatch period.

Effect of incubation system on the development of intestinal villi, metabolism, and performance of one- to forty-day-old broiler chickens

“…Molenaar et al (2010b) indicated that a constant EST throughout the incubation period can only be achieved by the SS setters because the parameters can be adjusted to compensate for excess embryo heat production. Therefore, if we consider that the main difference between the systems is incubation temperature control, these results agree with those obtained by Lourens et al (2005) and Molenaar et al (2010a), who found a lower CL in birds subjected to higher EST (38.9 °C) compared with those incubated under normal EST (37.8 °C).…”

“…By contrast, various experiments indicated that chicks hatched in incubation systems managed with high EST exhibited lower yolk-free body mass at hatching (Leksrisompong et al, 2007;Lourens et al, 2007;Molenaar et al, 2010a;Molenaar et al, 2011;Shim and Pesti, 2011). The differences between these results may be due to other factors in addition to temperature, such as the interaction with batches of eggs with different ages that were incubated inside the machine.…”

Effect of eggshell temperature throughout incubation on broiler hatchling leg bone development

“…Most of the unhatched chicks in very high EST were observed to be malpositioned, mainly with their head over their wing. Increased malpositions at high EST were previously found by Molenaar et al (2010), who described increased numbers of head between legs and head over wing embryos when they were incubated at an EST of 38.9°C from E7 onward compared with normal EST (37.8°C throughout).…”

“…From E19.5 onward, hatched chicks (n = 133) were pulled every 12 h. Chicks were weighed, their length was recorded from the tip of the beak to the tip of the middle toe, excluding the nail (Molenaar et al, 2010), and navel condition was scored as 1 (a clean and closed navel), 2 (a black button or gap of <2 mm), or 3 (a black button or gap of >2 mm; Molenaar et al, 2010). Residual yolk was removed and weighed after cervical dislocation.…”

“…To preserve the embryo, EST is measured as a reflection of embryo temperature. It has been shown that an EST of 37.5 to 38.0°C throughout incubation leads to highest yolk-free body mass (YFBM) and hatchability (Lourens et al, 2005(Lourens et al, , 2007Molenaar et al, 2010Molenaar et al, , 2011a. Whether this holds for bone development as well is not known.…”