STUDY OF RELATION BETWEEN THE HIGH-SELENIUM AND IRON IN DIET AND THE DEPOSITION OF SELENIUM AND IRON IN EGG

Thirty 278 day old hens were divided into three groups randomly and fed with diets containing 0.2 mg(Se) and 25 mg(Fe)·kg -1 (control group), 1.2 mg(Se) and 525 mg(Fe)·kg -1 (group 1), 2.2 mg(Se) and 1 025 mg(Fe)·kg -1 (group 2), respectively. The changes of production performance, egg quality and egg selenium and iron contents were observed. The results shown that as compared with control group yolk selenium contents in group 1 and group 2 were increased by 373% and 524%, albumen selenium contents by 225% and 217%, yolk iron contents by 55% and 86%, respectively. However, the change in albumen iron was not found. Meanwhile, plasma selenium levels of group 1 and group 2 were increased by 257% and 277%, plasma iron levels by 115% and 121%, respectively. Those results suggested that the diet supplemented with high selenium and iron could cause much higher selenium and iron contents in egg. So, the laying hen could be used as an effectual biologic transporter to transfer selenium and iron from diet to egg. Furthermore, no significant differences were observed in egg quality among different groups. But, the production performance was decreased by high selenium and iron diet feeding hens. The decrease of hen′s production performance was maybe caused by high selenium in high selenium and iron diet.