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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Ames, Iowa » National Animal Disease Center » Food Safety and Enteric Pathogens Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #172893
Title: EVALUATION OF CORN-FURAN FATTY ACIDS, PUTATIVE ENDOCRINE DISRUPTORS, ON REPRODUCTIVE PERFORMANCE IN ADULT FEMALE CHICKENS

Author
item WILHELMS, K - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY
item KRAUS, G - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY
item CUTLER, S - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY
item SCHROEDER, J - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY
item KIM, J - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY
item Rasmussen, Mark
item ANDERSON, L - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY
item SCANES, C - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY

Submitted to: Poultry Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/25/2006
Publication Date: 5/25/2006
Citation: Wilhelms, K.W., Kraus, G.A., Cutler, S.A., Schroeder, J.D., Kim, J.W., Rasmussen, M.A., Anderson, L.L., Scanes, C.G. 2006. Evaluation of corn-furan fatty acids, putative endocrine disruptors, on reproductive performance in adult female chickens. Poultry Science. 85(10): 1795-1797.

Interpretive Summary: Furan fatty acids are chemicals that are found in plants, including corn. They help protect plants from insects and diseases. Elevated levels of these chemicals can have adverse biological effects in rodents, including interfering with the reproductive cycle in females. We chemically synthesized specific furan fatty acids and fed them to laying hens to see if reproduction was inhibited at the levels fed. These chemicals caused no signs of toxicity and no bad effects on reproduction were observed. This was a preliminary experiment with a limited number of hens, but it suggests that these furan fatty acids should not be a concern to the poultry industry at the levels we investigated.

Technical Abstract: Based on evidence from rodent models, it was hypothesized that furan fatty acids found in corn would inhibit reproduction in the hen. An isomeric mixture of furan fatty acids (9, (12)-oxy-10,13-dihydroxystearic acid and 10, (13)-oxy-9,12-dihydroxystearic acid) were administered via the diet (1 and 3 ppm) at concentrations greater than those found in corn to 20-week-old pullets. There were no overt indications of acute or chronic toxicity (no effects on mortality, feed intake, or average daily gain). Similarly, there was no dose dependent effect on reproductive parameters including egg production, egg weight, shell thickness, ovarian weight, number or weight of large yolky pre-ovulatory follicles, and number of small yellow follicles (4-8 mm in diameter). While of limited scope, these experimental results do not suggest that these furan fatty acids are a cause of concern to the poultry industry.