Publications by authors named "F Mercerand"

In laying hens, a diet supplemented with tryptophan (Trp) has been shown to affect their pecking behavior. However, unlike this positive effect, Trp is also involved in negative effects on behavior and stress through indolic pathways. Indole production can be reduced by probiotics (Pro), thus we hypothesized that Pro may prevent negative effects of Trp and increase beneficial effects on behavior in birds.

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The effects of maternal nutrition on offspring phenotypes have been mainly documented over the past years in mammals, and are now studied in poultry as well. In the present study, we investigated the effects of a reduced level of dietary Methionine (Met) on laying performances of common laying ducks and their impacts on the phenotype of their mule ducklings. A total of 60 female laying ducks were divided into 2 dietary treatments at 10 wk of age.

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Overfed hens selected for their rapid growth become fatter and develop reproductive disorders. Herein, we aimed to demonstrate that food restriction leading to a weight reduction and/or a supplementation with fish oil may be effective in preventing reproductive disorders through the regulation of adipokine expression in broiler hens. This study included four groups of food restricted (Rt) or hens (Ad, feeding at a rate 1.

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Background: Reproductive hens are subjected to a restricted diet to limit the decline in fertility associated with change in body mass. However, endocrine and tissue responses to diet restriction need to be documented.

Objective: We evaluated the effect of different levels of feed restriction, with or without fish oil supplementation, on metabolic parameters and adipokine levels in plasma and metabolic tissues of reproductive hens.

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The poultry meat industry is faced with various quality issues related to variations in the ultimate pH of breast meat. The aim of this study was to evaluate the possibility to control breast ultimate pH by distributing finishing diets varying in amino acid (AA) and energy content for a short period before slaughter. Experimental diets were distributed to PM3 broilers on the last 3 d before slaughter (36 d of age).

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