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RESEARCH ARTICLE

The effect of dietary docosahexaenoic acid on the expression of lipogenic genes in broilers

H. J. Chin A , Y. H. Ko A , T. F. Shen A and S. T. Ding A B
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Department of Animal Science and Technology, National Taiwan University, Taipei 106, Taiwan.

B Corresponding author. Email: sding@ntu.edu.tw

Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 58(2) 153-159 https://doi.org/10.1071/AR05399
Submitted: 16 November 2005  Accepted: 26 October 2006   Published: 22 February 2007

Abstract

The objectives of this work were to determine the effects of dietary fungal docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) on tissue DHA concentration and lipogenic gene expression in broilers. A fungal (SR-21) meal product containing 31.5% total fat and 32.7% DHA (% of total fatty acids) was fed to chicken broilers at 0, 1, or 3% for 3 weeks. A diet with 1% DHA oil (containing 40% DHA) was also fed to chicken broilers as a positive control. Dietary fungal meal supplementation (3%) improved daily weight gain, food intake, and feed conversion ratio. The fungal meal supplementation increased dietary DHA content and consequently increased the DHA content in plasma, breast muscle (Pectoralis major), and livers in the broilers. The plasma triacylglycerol concentration was decreased by the supplementation of dietary DHA. The data indicate that the dietary DHA treatment modified certain aspects of the lipid metabolism, especially pathways related to triacylglycerol synthesis. Indeed, both the 1% DHA oil and 3% fungal meal treatments decreased the hepatic lipogenic transcription factor sterol regulatory element binding protein 1 (SREBP1) mRNA relative abundance, suggesting that dietary DHA supplementation decreases SREBP1 gene functions. The relative mRNA abundance of the de novo fatty acid synthesis genes, fatty acid synthase and acetyl coenzyme A carboxylase, was reduced by 1% DHA oil and 3% fungal meal treatments, suggesting that dietary DHA supplementation decreases lipogenesis in the livers of the broilers. Taken together, the fungal meal is a suitable dietary supplement to increase tissue DHA content and reduce the expression of hepatic lipogenic genes in broilers.

Additional keywords: acetyl coenzyme A carboxylase, broiler, fatty acid synthase, lipogenesis, liver.


Acknowledgments

The authors thank Y. S. Hsu at National Taiwan University for her technical assistance. We also thank H. J. Mersmann for his valuable input and scientific editing of this manuscript. This work was funded by the Council of Agriculture in Taiwan [Grant number 94AS-3.1.4-U1(7)].


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