Lipid stability of egg and laying performance of Japanese quail feed with extract of guava (Psidium guajava L.)

Abstract

Two experiments were conducted in order to evaluate the effect of dietary inclusion of guava extract on laying performance and lipid stability of egg of Japanese quails. For the fi rst experiment, 384 Japanese quails with 42 days old were distributed in a completely randomized design with four treatments (0.0; 3.0; 6.0; 9.0 g.kg -1 guava extract), 6 replicates, and 16 birds/replicate. The experimental period lasted 84 days, divided into 4 cycles of 21 days. The parameters evaluated were: feed consumption, egg production, egg mass, feed conversion ratio, egg weight, and egg internal and external qualities. On the second experiment, 400 eggs from Japanese quails fed with diets containing four levels of guava extract were distributed in a completely randomized design with a 4x4 factorial arrangement (guava extract levels and storage time: 0, 9, 18, 27 days) with 5 replicates. Analysis of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances was performed on egg yolks. Data were submitted to regression analysis, using α=0.05. On the fi rst experiment, the laying performance parameters were not infl uenced by the inclusion of guava extract in the feed, and eggshell thickness decreased linearly. On the second experiment an interaction was observed between the studied factors, affecting lipid oxidation in egg yolks. At nine days of storage, there was a quadratic effect of levels of dietary guava extract on lipid oxidation of yolk, being observed that using 4.8 g.kg -1 of guava extract on feed results in less lipid oxidation.