In the present study, the effects of dietary supplementation of organic and inorganic Mn, Zn, Cu, and Cr mixtures using two different levels (80, 60, 5, and 0.15 mg/kg and 40, 30, 2.5, and 0.07 mg/kg, respectively) on the bioavailability of these trace minerals and Ca in late-phase laying hens were evaluated. Three hundred and sixty laying hens (Barred Rock) at 50 weeks of age were used, and the duration of study was 16 weeks. Each of the four dietary regimes was randomly assigned to six replicates, which included 15 hens each. Organic trace minerals were provided as methionine chelates; inorganic Mn, Zn, and Cr were provided as oxides; and Cu was provided as sulfate. The organic form significantly increased the concentrations of serum Mn, Zn, Cu, and Ca; egg Mn, Zn, Cu, and Cr; and eggshell Zn and Cr compared with the inorganic form. However, the form of trace minerals did not affect the concentrations of serum Cr and eggshell Mn, Cu, and Ca. High-level addition of trace minerals significantly increased serum Mn and Zn; egg Mn, Zn, Cu, and Cr; and eggshell Mn, Zn, and Cu concentrations compared with low-level addition but did not affect serum Cu, Cr, and Ca or eggshell Cr and Ca concentrations. While the organic form reduced the excretion of Mn, Zn, Cu, Cr, and Ca, the high-level supplement increased Mn, Zn, and Cu excretion. The addition level did not affect Cr and Ca excretion. These results demonstrate that dietary supplementation of an organic Mn, Zn, Cu, and Cr mixture increases the bioavailability of Mn, Zn, Cu, Cr, and Ca compared with inorganic sources and that a lower level of trace mineral supplementation results in lower mineral excretion, particularly in an organic form.

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BackgroundDietary intake of lycopene has been associated with a reduced risk of ovarian cancer, suggesting its chemopreventive potential against ovarian carcinogenesis. Lycopene’s molecular mechanisms of action in ovarian cancer have not been fully understood. Therefore, in the present study, we investigated the effects of lycopene on the ovarian cancer formation using the laying hen model, a biologically relevant animal model of spontaneous ovarian carcinogenesis due to high incidence rates similar to humans.MethodsIn this study, a total of 150 laying hens at age of 102 weeks were randomized into groups of 50: a control group (0 mg of lycopene per kg of diet) and two treatment groups (200 mg or 400 mg of lycopene per kg of diet, or ~26 and 52 mg/d/hen, respectively). At the end of 12 months, blood, ovarian tissues and tumors were collected.ResultsWe observed that lycopene supplementation significantly reduced the overall ovarian tumor incidence (P < 0.01) as well as the number and the size of the tumors (P < 0.004 and P < 0.005, respectively). Lycopene also significantly decreased the rate of adenocarcinoma, including serous and mucinous subtypes (P < 0.006). Moreover, we also found that the serum level of oxidative stress marker malondialdehyde was significantly lower in lycopene-fed hens compared to control birds (P < 0.001). Molecular analysis of the ovarian tumors revealed that lycopene reduced the expression of NF-κB while increasing the expression of nuclear factor erythroid 2 and its major target protein, heme oxygenase 1. In addition, lycopene supplementation decreased the expression of STAT3 by inducing the protein inhibitor of activated STAT3 expression in the ovarian tissues.ConclusionsTaken together, our findings strongly support the potential of lycopene in the chemoprevention of ovarian cancer through antioxidant and anti-inflammatory mechanisms.

Genistein, the major isoflavone in soybean, has been reported to exert anticancer effects on various types of cancer including ovarian cancer; however, its chemopreventive effects and mechanisms of action in ovarian cancer have not been fully elucidated in spontaneously developing ovarian cancer models.In this study, we demonstrated the preventive effects and mechanisms of genistein in the laying hen model that develops spontaneous ovarian cancer at high incidence rates. Laying hens were randomized to three groups: control (3.01 mg/hen, n ¼ 100), low (52.48 mg/hen n ¼ 100), and high genistein supplementation (106.26 mg/hen/day; per group). At the end of 78 weeks, hens were euthanized and ovarian tumors were collected and analyzed. We observed that genis-tein supplementation significantly reduced the ovarian tumor incidence (P ¼ 0.002), as well as the number and size of the tumors (P ¼ 0.0001). Molecular analysis of the ovarian tumors revealed that genistein downregulated serum malondialdehyde, a marker for oxidative stress and the expression of NFkB and Bcl-2, whereas it upregulated Nrf2, HO-1, and Bax expression at protein level in ovarian tissues. Moreover, genistein intake decreased the activity of mTOR pathway as evidenced by reduced phosphorylation of mTOR, p70S6K1, and 4E-BP1. Taken together, our findings strongly support the potential of genistein in the chemoprevention of ovarian cancer and highlight the effects of the genistein on the molecular pathways involved in ovarian tumorigenesis. a Data are presented as the means and SEs. b Means in the same line without a common superscript differ significantly (P < 0.05).Sahin et al.

In this study dietary boron at different doses (0, 25, 50, 100 and 200 mg/kg feed) was supplemented to layers from 4 to 64 weeks of age. There was no significant difference between treatments with respect of mortality, egg production, egg weight, egg mass and cracked eggs. Significant increases were observed in body weight as age rose. Body weight was not affected by dietary boron supplementation at 16 and 40 weeks of age. At 64 weeks of age boron additions of 50, 100 and 200 mg/kg to the diet resulted in significant lower body weights than that of the control group. Egg quality parameters; albumen height and Haugh units, were improved when 25 or 50 mg boron/kg diet was supplemented above the other treatments. Shape index, shell thickness, shell breaking strength were not affected by treatments, though 25 mg boron/kg diet tended to increase shell breaking strength. Tibia bone strength and phosphorus content in the tibia and femur were not affected by boron supplementation. Boron supplementation at 25 and 50 mg/kg significantly increased femur bone strength, and ash and calcium content of the tibia and femur bones. Concentration of boron in bone increased with the increase in dietary boron.

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Background/aim: Numerous studies show that cancer risk is reduced by consumption of soy-based foods containing genistein, but its effects on the glycogen synthase kinase-3 pathway (GSK-3) in ovarian cancer is unknown. Therefore, we tested the properties of genistein on inflammatory biomarkers and GSK-3 signaling pathways in the ovaries of old laying hens with ovarian cancer. Materials and methods: A total of 300 laying hens were distributed into three groups as follows: group 1, animals fed a standard diet (comprising 22.39 mg of genistein/kg of diet); groups 2 and 3, animals fed a standard diet reconstituted with supplementation of 400 mg or 800 mg of genistein/kg of diet, respectively. Results: Genistein modulated the inflammatory biomarkers by decreasing serum tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8), and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) compared with control (P < 0.001). Moreover, genistein up-regulated insulin receptor substrate-1 (p-IRS-1) and protein kinase B (p-AKT), but down-regulated GSK-3α and β after treatment. Genistein acts in a dosedependent manner. Conclusion: Genistein exhibited an anti-cancer effect by reducing pro-inflammatory biomarkers levels and inhibiting GSK-3 expression in the ovaries of old laying hens. Genistein is a potential candidate in the chemoprevention and/or treatment of ovarian cancer.

Summary:This study was conducted to compare the effects of organic or inorganic Mn, Zn, Cu and Cr mixture using two different levels (80, 60, 5 and 0.15 mg/kg and 40, 30, 2.5 and 0.07 mg/kg, respectively) on the performance, egg quality and hatching characteristics of laying breeder hens. The experiment began with a total of 360 hens from Barred Rock line at 50 weeks of age and continued for 16 weeks. Each of the four dietary treatments was randomly assigned to six replicates, which included 15 hens each. Different trace mineral applications did not result in a significant effect on performance parameters such as livability, body weight gain, egg production, egg weight and mass, feed intake, and feed conversion. No significant differences in egg quality parameters such as damaged egg rate, shape index, eggshell rate and thickness, albumen height and haugh unit were observed among the groups. However, the low level of trace minerals resulted in a significant reduction in eggshell breaking strength (P < 0.05). Different trace mineral applications did not show a significant effect on hatching and fertilised eggs ratio. The dietary supplementation of organic (chelated with methionine) Mn, Zn, Cu and Cr at high levels (80, 60, 5 and 0.15 mg/kg, respectively) increased the hatchability of the fertilised eggs and hatchability compared to that of the other groups (P < 0.05).Key words: Breeder hen, egg quality, hatching characteristics, performance, trace mineral. Damızlık yumurta tavuğu yemine organik veya inorganik mangan, çinko, bakır ve krom ilavesinin performans, yumurta kalitesi ve kuluçka özellikleri üzerine etkileriÖzet: Bu araştırma, iki farklı seviyede organik veya inorganik Mn, Zn, Cu ve Cr karışımının (sırasıyla, 80, 60, 5 ve 0.15 mg/kg ve 40, 30, 2.5 ve 0.07 mg/kg) damızlık yumurta tavuklarının performans, yumurta kalitesi ve kuluçka özelliklerine etkilerini karşılaştırmak amacıyla düzenlenmiştir. Araştırma, 50 haftalık yaşta, toplam 360 adet Barred Rock hattı ile başlatılmış ve 16 hafta sürdürülmüştür. 4 ana grup her biri 15 tavuk içeren 6 tekerrüre rastgele dağıtılmıştır. Farklı iz mineral uygulamaları yaşama gücü, canlı ağırlık kazancı, yumurta verimi, yumurta ağırlığı ve kütlesi, yem tüketimi ve yemden yararlanma gibi performans parametreleri üzerinde önemli bir etki göstermemiştir. Yumurta kalite parametrelerinden, hasarlı yumurta oranı, şekil indeksi, kabuk oranı ve kalınlığı, ak yüksekliği ve haugh birimi bakımından gruplar arasında önemli farklılıklar bulunmamıştır. Bununla birlikte, düşük iz mineral seviyesi kabuk kırılma mukavemetinde önemli bir azalmaya sebep olmuştur. (P < 0.05). Farklı iz mineral uygulamaları, kuluçkalık ve döllü yumurta oranları üzerine önemli bir etki göstermemiştir. Organik (metiyonin şelatı) Mn, Zn, Cu ve Cr' un yüksek (sırasıyla, 80, 60, 5 ve 0.15 mg/kg) düzeyleri çıkış gücü ve kuluçka randımanını diğer gruplara göre artırmıştır (P < 0.05). Anahtar sözcükler: Damızlık tavuk, iz mineral, kuluçka özellikleri, performans, yumurta kalitesi.