Recent advances in the assessment of eggshell quality and their future application

Bain, M.M. (2005) Recent advances in the assessment of eggshell quality and their future application. World's Poultry Science Journal, 61(2), pp. 268-277. (doi: 10.1079/WPS200459)

Abstract

Any approach which aims to improve the quality and safety of eggs, is of limited value unless it can relate to the incidence of breakages in the field, and can be applied either directly to breeding programmes or used as online tools for quality assurance. Online systems require the method of assessment to be non-destructive. This is probably not so important for breeding companies who tend to gauge the usefulness of an eggshell quality measurement by its ease of measurement, its heritability and, its genetic correlation with other phenotypic traits. Historically, qualitative measures such as shell breaking or puncture strength, non-destructive deformation and specific gravity have been widely adopted as tools in selection programmes. The dynamic stiffness is a novel eggshell quality measurement, which could be utilised by poultry breeders as it has a moderate heritability and high genetic and phenotypic correlation with other shell quality traits including eggshell breaking strength. This non-destructive measurement could also be applied on-line to monitor shell quality. An alternative approach is to use genetic markers as tools to aid conventional breeding programmes where an important eggshell quality trait is practically too difficult or expensive to fully exploit. Marker-assisted selection for the genes coding for organic matrix proteins may provide a way of incorporating other beneficial egg quality traits into selection programmes in the future.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: This paper was first presented at the XXII World’s Poultry Congress, Istanbul, Turkey, June 8-13, 2004
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Bain, Professor Maureen
• Authors: Bain, M.M.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine
• Journal Name: World's Poultry Science Journal
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• ISSN: 0043-9339
• ISSN (Online): 1743-4777
• Published Online: 18 September 2007