INTERRELATIONSHIP OF OPTIMUM TEMPERATURE WITH THE CONCENTRATION OF PLASMA SUBSTRATES IN THE CHICKEN

Publisher Summary This chapter describes the interrelationship of optimum temperature with the concentration of plasma substrates in the chicken. Investigations were carried out in laying hybrids of different ages. Animals were kept for two hours in air-conditioned metabolic chambers with an ambient temperature of 5°C to 40°C. In some of the investigations, air humidity in the metabolic chambers could be changed and it was either 10 or 70%. After the end of temperature influence, heat production was estimated by the determination of oxygen consumption and carbon dioxide production, evaporation by using a psychrometer and rectal temperature by the use of a fever thermometer. Like energy metabolism relations between ambient temperature and the concentration of free fatty acids, as well as glucose in blood plasma can be described by a parabola shaped curve. In this case, the minimum of glucose concentration is always below and that of free fatty acids concentration above the thermal neutral temperature. The energy metabolism is the lowest at an ambient temperature at which the whole concentration of energetic substrates in blood plasma shows the lowest value. It is found that at low temperatures free fatty acids and at high temperatures especially glucose are metabolized.