Genetic improvement of egg laying traits in Fayoumi chickens bred under conditions of heat stress through selection and gene expression studies

Abstract

Thermal stress has been shown to result in decreased egg production, decreased eggshell quality, and ultimately millions of dollars in losses to the industry. Therefore, there are many factors to consider when implementing genetic selection programs aimed at improving egg production under tropical conditions. So, trial is trying to improve the productivity and eggshell quality traits of the Fayoumi chicken under high ambient temperatures via selection programs and gene expression. In the present study, day-old Fayoumi chicks were raised either under normal temperature (control) or conditions of thermal stress (the heated group). At 35 weeks, male and female chickens from the control group were mated randomly and females selected for higher egg production and eggshell strength were mated to male siblings to obtain the progeny of the first generation (F1). F1 birds were further selected and mated to obtain the progeny of the second generation. Our results show that egg production and eggshell strength traits improved over successive generations via selection under conditions of heat stress. Furthermore, the reduction in egg production and eggshell strength as a result of heat stress declined from one generation to the next in birds selected for good heat tolerance, and an inverse relationship was observed between the OC-17 and eggshell strength. Additionally, levels of HSP90 and gene expression increased in the two successive generations, indicating that both productivity and heat tolerance were enhanced due to selection in birds raised under conditions of thermal stress. Moreover, generation exerted an important effect on this trait. Thus, desirable traits such as improved heat tolerance in producing lines were observed in Fayoumi chickens exposed to conditions of thermal stress via selection. Therefore, modern advances in studies of poultry breeding and genetics, such as gene expression studies, should be examined.