Carbon-13 turnover in the feathers of broilers at different stages of growth by stable isotope technique

• Grant number: 13/02715-7
• Support type: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Effective date (Start): June 01, 2013
• Effective date (End): November 30, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Animal Husbandry - Animal Nutrition and Feeding
• Principal researcher: Vanessa Cristina Pelícia
• Grantee: Peterson Dante Gavasso Pacheco
• Home Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IBB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The stable isotopes technique as tracers used to assess the development and regeneration speed of animal tissues, has been employed as auxiliary instrument methodology for estimating the tissue of chickens requirement for amino acids. Moreover, it has wide potential for the practice of traceability of animal ingredients in feed for chickens by analysis of their tissues. However, the development of such research, more studies are needed to contribute to a broad knowledge of the isotopic assimilation of organic matter in the tissues and growing birds. For traceability of animal ingredients in feed for broiler chickens at any stage of creation, the study of tissues, which can be collected without the sacrifice of the bird, it is of utmost importance. So considering, it is proposed that research that aims to determine the turnover of carbon in feathers of chickens in different growth phases, using the natural variation of the carbon-13 between the different photosynthetic cycle plants (C3 and C4). For its development, we used 500 broiler chicks from 1 day of age, divided into 6 groups. The birds should have C13 isotope sings in their tissues similar of the C4 diet consumed by female broiler breeders. To evaluate the turnover rate in the tissues, the birds were fed diets vegetables exclusively composed predominantly of C3 plants cycle, starting at different stages of growth. Group 1 received C3 diet since the beginning of the experiment, while the other groups were fed C4 diets. Group 2 had their diet replaced by C3 diet with 7° of life, group 3 on day 14°, group 4 on day 21°, group 5, at 28° and group 6 at 35° day old. Feathers samples were be collected on several consecutive days the birds that had previously replaced their diets to determination the isotopic carbon ratios in the mass spectrometer. To measure the carbon rate substitution after a certain time interval (turnover), will be used exponential function of time obtained by the method of exponential equations of the first order of Minitab® 16 software. (AU)