Fatty acid composition of quail meat and eggs following dietary supplementation with a humic-based feed additive
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31210/spi2026.29.02.19Keywords:
Humivet, Chiktonikvet, saturated fatty acids, unsaturated fatty acids, quailsAbstract
Humic acids are among the most effective natural chelating agents due to the wide variety of their functional groups. Compared with other inorganic adsorbents, particularly zeolites, their adsorption capacity is several times higher. In addition, their ability to bind heavy metals, such as cadmium and lead, increases with the atomic mass of the element. Humic acids also exhibit a high affinity for heterogeneous compounds, enabling them to eliminate or reduce the toxic effects of endogenous and exogenous toxins. The present study evaluated the effect of dietary supplementation with the humic substance-based feed additive Humivet and the veterinary preparation Chiktonikvet on the fatty acid composition of quail meat and eggs. Ninety-day-old Phoenix Golden quails were randomly assigned to three groups of 20 birds each. The first group served as the control and received no supplementation. Birds in the second group received 4 mL of Humivet per 1 L of drinking water, whereas birds in the third group received 2 mL of the oral veterinary preparation Chiktonikvet (batch V-022) per 1 L of drinking water. Both preparations were administered for 21 consecutive days. Dietary supplementation with Humivet and Chiktonikvet reduced the concentrations of several saturated fatty acids in quail meat, including arachidic, behenic, myristic, and heptadecanoic acids, compared with the control group. Additionally, the monounsaturated myristoleic acid was decreased. Supplementation with Chiktonikvet increased the contents of linoleic (20.7±1.022, p<0.05), α-linolenic (0.42±0.021), and γ-linolenic (0.86±0.042) acids compared with the control. The concentrations of 18 fatty acids were also determined in quail eggs following dietary supplementation with Humivet and Chiktonikvet. Eggs from birds receiving Humivet contained the highest levels of linoleic acid (p<0.05), oleic acid (49.0±2.438 %, p<0.05), and docosahexaenoic acid (0.30±0.014 %). The obtained results demonstrate that supplementation of quail diets with the humic substance-based feed additive Humivet at a dose of 4 mL/L of drinking water significantly (p<0.05) decreased the proportion of saturated fatty acids and increased the proportion of unsaturated fatty acids in meat. In eggs, Humivet supplementation significantly (p<0.05) increased the proportions of linoleic and oleic acids.
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