The objective of the study was to investigate the effect of linseed and rapeseed or respective oils on performance indices, nutrient digestibility, metabolizable energy of diets, digesta viscosity, and yield and chemical composition of edible and non-edible parts of the carcass of broiler chickens, with particular attention to n-3 PUFA. Two experiments were performed on 134 female broiler chickens, randomly allocated to 3 groups of 22 birds (Experiment 1) or 2 groups of 24 birds (Experiment 2) and 10 birds to a zero group. The chickens were kept in individual cages. Five wheat-based and xylanase-supplemented diets containing about 80 g crude fat per kg were prepared. The source of added fat was in control diet lard (61 g/kg), in experimental diets half of the lard was substituted by: linseed oil (LO) or full-fat linseed (L), rapeseed oil (RO) or full-fat rapeseed (R). Chickens were given the control or experimental diets from days 8 to 42 of life, then they were slaughtered, the carcasses were divided into edible and non-edible parts, and their chemical composition determined. Feeding diet with rapeseed did not significantly affect BWG or FCR, while linseed caused an increase in feed intake and subsequent deterioration in FCR, which in groups C, LO, and L equalled 1.82, 1.73 and 2.0, respectively. The viscosity of jejunal digesta in group L reached 4.5 mPas.s in comparison with about 1.5 in all of the remaining groups. Organic matter retention and AME N value of diet L was lower than in diets C and LO (P≤0.05), while apparent protein and fat digestibility, organic matter retention, and the AME N value of diet R was lower than RO (P≤0.01). Protein retention and meat yield was lower in group L than in both of the other groups (P≤0.05). The deposition

The effects of phytase supplementation on the nutritional value, P availability and thyroid status of birds fed 4 differently processed rapeseed expeller cakes (RC) were determined. Two experiments were performed: a balance experiment on 10 groups of nine 3-week-old broilers and a growth experiment on 9 groups of one-day-old broiler females, 11 birds per group. In the balance experiment, a basal (B) and 4 test diets (B mixed with RC in a 6:4 proportion with DM) were fed; half of each diet was supplemented with 1000 U phytase/kg. In the growth experiment, the control diet without RC and isonitrogenous diets with RC supplemented or unsupplemented with 1000 U phytase/kg (RCP) were fed. The amount of RC was 100 or 150 g/kg in diets fed between days 1-21 and 22-42 of life, respectively. The levels of Ca and available P in RC diets were as in the control diet, while in RCP diets they were lowered by 7 and 12%, respectively.Phytase supplementation increased apparent protein digestibility and metabolizable energy values, while it did not affect P availability from RC. BWG was lower in some groups and FCR 5% worse (P<0.05) in all RC groups than in the control. The type of RC significantly affected feed intake, BWG, thyroid and kidney weight. Addition of phytase to RCP diets increased thyroid weight (P<0.01). Phytase addition did not fully compensate for lower Ca and P levels in RCP diets, as tibia ash content was reduced (P<0.05), but this had no effect on tibia weight and ultimate strength.

A wheat-based diet containing 300 g/kg white lupin seeds (L) was fed either unsupplemented or supplemented with one, two or three commercial enzymes. Enzyme B contained primarily xylanase activity, enzyme E primarily pectinase and β-glucanase activity, enzyme A primarily α-galactosidase activity. Each diet was fed to a group of 24 eight-day-old broiler females kept individually. During the fi rst two weeks performance was recorded, next the passage rate was measured in 6 birds, and the digestibility of nutrients was evaluated in 10 birds from each group. On day 25-26 of life, 14 birds per group were slaughtered and viscosity and pH of digesta from different parts of the digestive tract were determined.Body weight gain, feed conversion ratio, metabolizable energy of diet, viscosity of digesta in the jejunum and distal ileum, pH of digesta in the caeca, and excreta moisture content were not affected by enzyme supplementation of lupin diets. In group LB the digestibility of dietary fat increased (P<0.05) in comparison with group L. In group LBE, apparent protein digestibility and organic matter retention decreased and digesta viscosity in the caeca increased (from 2.4 and 5.6 to 21.3 mPas . s, respectively) in comparison with groups L and LB (P<0.05). Supplementation of the LBE diet with enzyme A caused a decrease in caecal digesta viscosity to 9.4 mPas . s and an increase in the rate of passage of digesta during the fi rst 4 h.

The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of digesta viscosity on the development of the digestive tract, motility of the small intestine and digestion of nutrients in the early stages of life of broiler chickens. At the age of 1 week sixty-six broiler Hybro females were allocated to 3 groups, 22 per group. The birds were caged individually and fed ad libitum a control, wheat-based diet supplemented with xylanase (lg/kg), or rye-based diets: R, non-supplemented or RE, supplemented with xylanase (3g/kg). Diets were cold pelleted. Body weight and feed intake were registered in weekly intervals. In the fourth week of life apparent fat and protein digestibility and metabolizable energy value of the diet were estimated in a balance study on 8 birds from each group. In the fifth week of life all birds were sacrificed and the extent of stomach distention was scored from 1 (normal) to 5 (most distended). Duodenum and jejunum fragments were taken and their in vitro motility was measured in 7 chickens per group. From the remaining birds the content of the stomach, jejunum and ileum were collected for viscosity measurements. Due to enzyme supplementation of the rye-based diet, the viscosity of digesta decreased significantly from 2.6, 17.1 and 35.4 in the stomach, jejunum and ileum digesta in group R, to 1.7, 4.7 and 8.2, respectively, in group RE (PO.001), the performance of chickens improved, and apparent fat (from 79 to 88%) and protein (from 86 to 87%) digestibilities and the AME N value of the diet increased (from 13.3 to 14.5 MJ ME/kg DM). The contractile activity of the duodenum and jejunum in response to acetylcholine was higher in group RE * Supported by the State Committee for Scientific Research, Grant No. 5 P06E 031 15 1 Corresponding author 684 DIGESTA VISCOSITY -DEVELOPMENT OF GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT than in R, but only in the jejunum was the difference significant. The mean score of stomach distention was 3.05 in group R, 2.32 in group RE, and 2.05 in the control group (P<0.05). High digesta viscosity may negatively affect the development of the stomach and motility of the small intestine in young chickens; lowering viscosity by enzyme supplementation of diets containing viscous NSPs allows reduction of disturbances in digestive tract development.

As from January 2010 The Israeli Journal of Aquaculture -Bamidgeh (IJA) has been published exclusively as an online Open Access scientific journal, accessible by all.Please visit our IJA Website http://www.aquaculturehub.org/group/israelijournalofaquaculturebamidgehija for free publications and to enable you to submit your manuscripts. This transformation from a subscription printed version to an online Open Access journal aims at supporting the concept that scientific peer-reviewed publications and thus the IJA publications should be made available to all for free.