hrvatski

Content and deposition of carotenoids in egg yolk from hens fed diets differentiated in maize hybrid

Maize is the main energy feed material in hen’s diet, and the only major component with relevant carotenoid content. Carotenoids give yellow to orange colour of egg yolk, however, contribution of maize carotenoids to yolk pigmentation is neglected. There are a variety of maize hybrids available for planting that contain different carotenoid profile and this study aimed to explore the effect of six maize hybrids in 56%-proportion in diets without added pigments on the deposition of individual and total carotenoids (TC) into egg yolks. In total, 90 Tetra-SL hens, by three in each cage, were allocated to six dietary treatments in complete randomized design (6 treatments×5 cages). After depletion period, hens were fed five experimental (Bc 572, Kekec, Mejaš, Riđan and Pajdaš) and one control (unknown hybrid) diets for 12 weeks. Eggs were collected every three days until stabilisation, determined using yolk colour assessed with Minolta CR-410 Chroma meter, and then once weekly until the end of 12th week. Carotenoid profile of diets and egg yolks was determined using HPLC method, and values from day 35 were used for calculations of deposition deficiencies. Redness was the colour parameter the most sensitive to changes in yolk carotenoid profile, and it stabilised after day 13 of the trial [P<0.001, 8.11 (control) – 13.24 (Bc 572)]. Carotenoid profile in yolks reflected one in maize hybrids with highest contents of lutein (13.29 μg/g) and β-carotene (0.78 μg/g) in eggs from hens fed with Riđan while eggs from hens fed with Bc 572 had highest contents of zeaxanthin (15.85 μg/g) and β-cryptoxanthin (0.93 μg/g). Riđan also obtained highest deposition efficiencies of zeaxanthin and β- carotene (28.51% and 8.85%) while Kekec and Bc 572 were the most efficient in deposition of β- cryptoxanthin (11.65%) and lutein (28.65%), respectively. Mejaš was the most efficient in deposition of TC due to the high values obtained for lutein and zeaxanthin while control was the least efficient in deposition of all carotenoids. Experimental maize hybrids had sufficient carotenoid content to achieve high redness values of egg yolks with high deposition efficiencies providing a suitable replacement for pigment supplements in hen’s diet.

Carotenoids ; Deposition efficiency ; Egg yolk ; Laying hens ; Maize hybrid

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