Effect of blue and red monochromatic light during incubation on the early post-embryonic development of immune responses in broiler chicken.

1. The light regime during incubation can influence embryonic and post-embryonic life and its effects can be mediated by rhythmic melatonin production in the embryonic pineal gland.2.

Development and reactivity of the immune system of Japanese quail lines divergently selected for the shape of the growth curve.

1. Selection strategies for broilers must balance rapid growth with the welfare and health of animals, strategies must deal with the trade-off with other vital functions.2.

Preliminary results on intersexual differences in gene expression of chemokine K203 in mononuclear cells of chicken.

Sex steroid levels increase during sexual maturation and cause alterations in many physiological and morphological traits. Some of these changes may be connected with age-dependent and intersexual differences in the immune system. This topic is still insufficiently understood, especially in avian species, partially due to methodological limitations.

Maternally derived egg hormones, antibodies and antimicrobial proteins: common and different pathways of maternal effects in Japanese quail.

Avian eggs contain a variety of maternally-derived substances that can influence the development and performance of offspring. The levels of these egg compounds vary in relation to environmental and genetic factors, but little is known about whether there are correlative links between maternal substances in the egg underlying common and different pathways of maternal effects. In the present study, we investigated genetically determined variability and mutually adjusted deposition of sex hormones (testosterone-T, androstenedione-A4 and progesterone-P4), antibodies (IgY) and antimicrobial proteins (lysozyme) in eggs of Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica).