ROLE OF LACTOFERRIN DURING EMBRYOGENESIS IN EMBRYONIC DEVELOPMENT AND BLOOD BIOCHEMISTRY OF FAYOUMI CHICKS

An experiment was carried out to study the influences of in ovo lactoferrin (Lf) injection at 7 days of embryogenesis on the development of the embryo, blood biochemistry, haematology, and antioxidant status in Fayoumi chicks. On day 7 of incubation, six hundred fertile eggs obtained from a Fayoumi chicken flock were randomly assigned to four groups of 150 eggs each, with each group further subdivided into 5 replicates of 30 eggs. The first group, un-injected eggs (the control), The second group was injected with 0.1 ml saline, and the third and fourth groups were injected with saline (0.1 ml) containing 50 and 100 µl Lf respectively. In ovo injection of 100 µl Lf significantly augmented the chick weight, thymus %, and bursa% at hatch day. In ovo Lf injection considerably (p < 0.05) reduced overall counts of bacteria and fungi, as well as the count of harmful bacteria, including Shigella, Coliform, and Salmonella. The values of total protein, globulin, albumin, High-Density Lipoprotein (HDL) and antioxidant indices except Glutathione Peroxidase (GSH-px) in the serum were significantly augmented in the Lf-treated groups compared with the control group. Blood hematology, serum creatine, uric acid, triglycerides, and Low-Density Lipoprotein (LDL) not impacted by in ovo Lf injection. Lf groups showed significantly (p < 0.05) lower serum total cholesterol, Aspartate Aminotransferase (AST) (p < 0.001), and Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT) (p < 0.05) than the control group. In conclusion, in ovo administration of Lf at 7 days of embryogenesis positively influences the embryo development, blood biochemistry, antioxidant status, and microbial analysis of residual yolk sac in Fayoumi chicks.