Effect of Dietary Fish-Meal on Chicken Serum, Liver and Spleen Fatty Acid Metabolism

2 Abstract: Fish meal is the primary component of chicken diets that contributes DHA, therefore it wa s speculated that increasing dietary fish meal might alter tissue fatty acid metabolism in laying hens. Leghorn chickens (48) were fed diets containing 0, 1.5, 3 or 6% fish meal for 3 and 9 weeks. All fish meal diets (at 3 weeks) produced a significant increase in serum oleic acid (C16:1) compared to control diet. In chickens fed 3% fish meal diets there was a significant increase in serum stearic acid (C18:0) at 3 weeks compared to all other dietary groups. All fish meal diets (at 3 weeks) produced a dose dependent, significant decrease in splenocyte arachidonic acid (AA, C20:4). Furthermore, hens fed 3 and 6% fish meal showed a significant increase in splenocyte nervonic acid (C24:1) compared to control diet-fed hens at 3 weeks. None of the fish meal diets produced any significant changes in liver fatty acids. Overall, poultry diets containing up to 6% by weight fish meal produced tissue specific, modest changes in fatty acids.