Effects of cage size on the natural behavior, serum parameters, production performance and hypothalamic mRNA expression profiles of laying hens
The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of cage size on the natural behavior, serum biochemistry, production performance and hypothalamic transcriptome profiles of laying hens. A total of 360 79-week-old hens were selected and randomly assigned to three groups (with five replicates e...
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| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Poultry Science |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0032579124012252 |
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| author | Yi Wan Ruiyu Ma Renrong Qi Dawei Jiang Helong Guan Wei Liu Junying Li Yan Li Kai Zhan |
| author_facet | Yi Wan Ruiyu Ma Renrong Qi Dawei Jiang Helong Guan Wei Liu Junying Li Yan Li Kai Zhan |
| author_sort | Yi Wan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of cage size on the natural behavior, serum biochemistry, production performance and hypothalamic transcriptome profiles of laying hens. A total of 360 79-week-old hens were selected and randomly assigned to three groups (with five replicates each) with different cage sizes: large cages (LCs), medium cages (MCs), and small cages (SCs). The stocking density remained consistent across all groups throughout the experimental period. Behavioral expression was evaluated through observation of only six birds per group on a weekly basis. Compared to the SC group, the average frequencies of walking, wing-flapping, feather-pecking and drinking significantly increased in the LC and MC groups (P <0.05), whereas the average frequency of stereotypic behavior significantly decreased (P <0.05), indicating that cage size has positive effects on natural behavior. The average daily step count (DSC) was in the order LC > MC > SC (P <0.05), which suggested an improvement in exercise ability in larger cages. The serum levels of MDA, CORT, AST and T-CH were significantly lower in the LC and MC groups than in the SC group (P <0.05), whereas the serum activities of SOD and GSH-Px were significantly greater (P <0.05). Additionally, compared to the SC group, the laying rates were increased by 1.61% and 2.20% (P <0.05), and the feed conversion ratio (FCR) were improved by 1.35% and 2.25%, respectively (P <0.05) in the LC and MC groups, respectively. In total, 437 and 81 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in the hypothalamus of birds between the LC and SC groups and the MC and SC groups, respectively. A majority of these DEGs were involved primarily in neuroactive ligand‒receptor interactions, focal adhesion and calcium signaling pathways, which are associated with the regulation of behavioral patterns, the stress response and follicular development. Our results suggest that an appropriate increase in cage size is beneficial to the natural behavior expression, health status and production performance of laying hens. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-f6c8ddc64c104947918b08ce8b208808 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 0032-5791 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Poultry Science |
| spelling | doaj-art-f6c8ddc64c104947918b08ce8b2088082025-01-22T05:40:49ZengElsevierPoultry Science0032-57912025-01-011041104647Effects of cage size on the natural behavior, serum parameters, production performance and hypothalamic mRNA expression profiles of laying hensYi Wan0Ruiyu Ma1Renrong Qi2Dawei Jiang3Helong Guan4Wei Liu5Junying Li6Yan Li7Kai Zhan8Anhui Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Product Safety Engineering, Institute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, Anhui 230031, ChinaAnhui Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Product Safety Engineering, Institute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, Anhui 230031, ChinaAnhui Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Product Safety Engineering, Institute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, Anhui 230031, ChinaAnhui Sundaily Village Ecological Food Co., Ltd., Huaining 246100, ChinaAnhui Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Product Safety Engineering, Institute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, Anhui 230031, ChinaAnhui Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Product Safety Engineering, Institute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, Anhui 230031, ChinaAnhui Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Product Safety Engineering, Institute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, Anhui 230031, ChinaAnhui Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Product Safety Engineering, Institute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, Anhui 230031, ChinaInstitute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, Anhui Academy of Agriculture Science, Hefei 230031, China; Corresponding author.The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of cage size on the natural behavior, serum biochemistry, production performance and hypothalamic transcriptome profiles of laying hens. A total of 360 79-week-old hens were selected and randomly assigned to three groups (with five replicates each) with different cage sizes: large cages (LCs), medium cages (MCs), and small cages (SCs). The stocking density remained consistent across all groups throughout the experimental period. Behavioral expression was evaluated through observation of only six birds per group on a weekly basis. Compared to the SC group, the average frequencies of walking, wing-flapping, feather-pecking and drinking significantly increased in the LC and MC groups (P <0.05), whereas the average frequency of stereotypic behavior significantly decreased (P <0.05), indicating that cage size has positive effects on natural behavior. The average daily step count (DSC) was in the order LC > MC > SC (P <0.05), which suggested an improvement in exercise ability in larger cages. The serum levels of MDA, CORT, AST and T-CH were significantly lower in the LC and MC groups than in the SC group (P <0.05), whereas the serum activities of SOD and GSH-Px were significantly greater (P <0.05). Additionally, compared to the SC group, the laying rates were increased by 1.61% and 2.20% (P <0.05), and the feed conversion ratio (FCR) were improved by 1.35% and 2.25%, respectively (P <0.05) in the LC and MC groups, respectively. In total, 437 and 81 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in the hypothalamus of birds between the LC and SC groups and the MC and SC groups, respectively. A majority of these DEGs were involved primarily in neuroactive ligand‒receptor interactions, focal adhesion and calcium signaling pathways, which are associated with the regulation of behavioral patterns, the stress response and follicular development. Our results suggest that an appropriate increase in cage size is beneficial to the natural behavior expression, health status and production performance of laying hens.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0032579124012252Cage sizeLaying henNatural behaviorProduction performanceHypothalamus transcriptome analysis |
| spellingShingle | Yi Wan Ruiyu Ma Renrong Qi Dawei Jiang Helong Guan Wei Liu Junying Li Yan Li Kai Zhan Effects of cage size on the natural behavior, serum parameters, production performance and hypothalamic mRNA expression profiles of laying hens Poultry Science Cage size Laying hen Natural behavior Production performance Hypothalamus transcriptome analysis |
| title | Effects of cage size on the natural behavior, serum parameters, production performance and hypothalamic mRNA expression profiles of laying hens |
| title_full | Effects of cage size on the natural behavior, serum parameters, production performance and hypothalamic mRNA expression profiles of laying hens |
| title_fullStr | Effects of cage size on the natural behavior, serum parameters, production performance and hypothalamic mRNA expression profiles of laying hens |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effects of cage size on the natural behavior, serum parameters, production performance and hypothalamic mRNA expression profiles of laying hens |
| title_short | Effects of cage size on the natural behavior, serum parameters, production performance and hypothalamic mRNA expression profiles of laying hens |
| title_sort | effects of cage size on the natural behavior serum parameters production performance and hypothalamic mrna expression profiles of laying hens |
| topic | Cage size Laying hen Natural behavior Production performance Hypothalamus transcriptome analysis |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0032579124012252 |
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