Effect of eggshell temperature and oxygen concentration on survival rate and nutrient utilization in chicken embryos

Roos Molenaar*, Ron Meijerhof†, Ilona van den Anker‡, Marcel Heetkamp‡, Joost van den Borne§, Bas Kemp‡, and Henry van den Brand‡

*HatchTech Incubation Technology B.V., P.O. Box 256, 3900 AG Veenendaal, the Netherlands; †Poultry Performance Plus, Kleine Enkweg 1, 7383 DB Voorst, the Netherlands; ‡Adaptation Physiology Group, Wageningen University, P.O. Box 338, 6700 AH Wageningen, the Netherlands; §Animal Nutrition Group, Wageningen University, P.O. Box 338, 6700 AH Wageningen, the Netherlands.

Environmental conditions such as temperature and O2 concentration affect embryo development that may be associated with modifications in nutrient partitioning during incubation. Additionally, prenatal conditions can affect postnatal nutrient utilization.

Using broiler chicken embryos, we studied the effects of eggshell temperature (EST; 37.8 or 38.9°C) and O2 (17, 21 or 25%) applied from d 7 until 19 of incubation in a 2×3 factorial design. Effects of these factors on embryonic survival, development and nutrient utilization were assessed in the pre- and posthatch period. High EST reduced yolk free body (YFB) mass compared to normal EST (36.1 vs. 37.7 g), possibly through reduced incubation duration (479 vs. 487 h) and lower efficiency of protein utilization for growth (83.6 vs. 86.8%). Increasing O2 increased YFB mass (from 35.7 to 38.3 g) at 12 h after emergence from the eggshell, but differences were larger between the low and normal O2 than between the normal and high O2. This might be due to the lower efficiency of nutrient utilization for growth at low O2. However, the effects of O2 that were found at 12 h, were less pronounced at 48 h posthatch. When O2 was shifted to 21% for all treatments at d 19 of incubation, embryos incubated at low O2 utilized nutrients more efficiently than those incubated at normal or high O2. An additional negative effect on survival and chick development occurred when embryos were exposed to a combination of high EST and low O2.