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IN OPENING the discussion of the papers presented by Drs. DeOme, Stubbs, and Emmel, let me compliment them on the diligent manner in which they have attacked the problem of these diseases in the chicken. Undoubtedly they will agree with my statement that much remains to be done before our knowledge concerning them is complete. Such symposiums as this indicate a healthy attitude toward the problem. They offer a means for group discussion and the exchange of thoughts by those intimately concerned with the matter. In this symposium we have a large assembly of contributors to our knowledge of these diseases. Their remarks in this discussion will be of much interest. The economic significance of the disorders included in the title of this symposium, “Avian Lymphomatosis and Allied Diseases” is undoubtedly appreciated by all of you. For the present I shall not dwell upon this aspect of the problem, other . . .

Broiler chickens are commonly placed on wood shavings as litter, but alternative litter sources are required due to the scarcity of wood shavings in many parts of the world. This study aimed to compare pelleted straw, chopped wheat straw, wood shavings, rice hulls, and shredded paper as litter candidates. Three-hundred-sixty Ross 308 one-day-old male chicks were used in this study. There were 5 litter treatments with 6 replicate pens, each with 12 birds. The feed conversion ratio (FCR) of birds reared on pelleted straw was improved compared (P

AS ALREADY stated by Dr. Olson, the condition of “hemocytoblastosis” as described by Emmel is not recognized by other workers. To this it should be added that the designation “hemocytoblastosis” brings up a very fundamental point of terminology. Johnson used the term in its original meaning; namely, a leukotic proliferation of the hemocytoblastic stem cell. Whether or not the etiologic concept implied by him is correct is beside the point. Emmel defined hemocytoblastosis as an increase or decrease in leukocytes accompanied by the appearance of immature and degenerative blood cells in the circulating blood. Such hemocytoblastosis (Emmel) could be induced in chicks by a number of different agents and conditions, including Salmonella toxicosis, normal chicken tissues, benzol poisonings, anoxemias, and avitaminoses. In a recent study W. P. Blount (Ph.D. thesis, Edinburgh University, 1938, Abstract Vet. Jour., 1939, 95:193) was able to observe all of the features of Emmel’s hemocytoblastosis in . . .

IT SEEMS to me that the method of approach suggested by Dr. Martin is the only one available at the present time. It has been demonstrated that, under certain conditions, resistance to lymphomatosis can be increased by means of selection. From a purely practical point of view, it should be pointed out that the ultimate success of Dr. Martin’s program depends on the assumption that strains of birds selected for resistance to lymphomatosis under the conditions of one flock would also be resistant under entirely different conditions. This assumption needs testing before any extended program of selection is undertaken. There is some evidence that resistant strains from one flock were not resistant when placed in another. The development of useful strains under such conditions would be very difficult. There is another point that should be tested. It is possible that there may be several types of agents or circumstances capable . . .

The objective of this study was to develop an economical, simple, and large-scale separation method for IgY from egg yolk. Egg yolk diluted with 9 volumes of cold water was centrifuged after adjusting the pH to 5.0. The supernatant was added with 0.01% charcoal or 0.01% carrageenan and centrifuged at 2,800 x g for 30 min. The supernatant was filtered through a Whatman no. 1 filter paper and then the filtrate was concentrated to 20% original volume using ultrafiltration. The concentrated solution was further purified using either cation exchange chromatography or ammonium sulfate precipitation. For the cation exchange chromatography method, the concentrated sample was loaded onto a column equilibrated with 20 mM citrate-phosphate buffer at pH 4.8 and eluted with 200 mM citrate-phosphate buffer at pH 6.4. For the ammonium sulfate precipitation method, the concentrated sample was twice precipitated with 40% ammonium sulfate solution at pH 9.0. The yield and purity of IgY were determined by ELISA and electrophoresis. The yield of IgY from the cation exchange chromatography method was 30 to 40%, whereas that of the ammonium sulfate precipitation was 70 to 80%. The purity of IgY from the ammonium sulfate method was higher than that of the cation exchange chromatography. The cation exchange chromatography could handle only a small amount of samples, whereas the ammonium sulfate precipitation could handle a large volume of samples. This suggests that ammonium sulfate precipitation was a more efficient and useful purification method than cation exchange chromatography for the large-scale preparation of IgY from egg yolk.

Three experiments, which included 4 broiler flocks, were conducted to examine the usefulness of a novel bedding material for rearing broilers. The control bedding was pine shavings. The novel bedding, aGroChips (AC), was a chopped material made from cotton lint waste, gypsum, and old newsprint using a proprietary paper manufacturing process (Novovita, Inc., Raleigh, NC). All birds were fed the same feeding program: starter from 0 to 3 wk, grower from 3 to 5 or 6 wk, and finisher during the last week. Birds were marketed at either 6 or 7 wk of age. Feed consumption by pen and individual bird BW were measured at 3 and 6 or 7 wk. Mean BW and feed conversion, adjusted to include weight of mortality, were calculated. A sample of birds (n = 10) from each pen was evaluated for hock and foot pad condition. Each pen was evaluated at the end of the trial for litter cake index in 3 of the 4 flocks. Litter cake index scores were generally higher for birds reared on AC litters. There were no other differences in bird performance for any of the flocks. In conclusion, broilers reared on AC bedding perform as well as those reared on pine shavings.

The influence of fiber source and dietary fat level on digestive traits and productive performance was studied in broilers from 1 to 21 d of age. There were 6 treatments arranged factorially with 3 sources of fiber (none; 3% oat hulls, OH; and 3% sugar beet pulp, SBP) and 2 fat sources (5% soybean oil, SO; and 5% yellow grease, YG). Each treatment was replicated 6 times and the experimental unit was a cage with 18 broilers. Fiber inclusion improved BW gain (P < or = 0.05) and feed:gain ratio (P < or = 0.001) and increased total tract apparent retention (TTAR) of all nutrients measured (P < or = 0.001). The increases observed in TTAR of nitrogen and ether extract and on AME(n) of the diet were more pronounced with OH than with SBP. The increases in nutrient digestibility with OH inclusion were higher at excreta than at ileal level and in fact, SBP inclusion reduced the apparent ileal digestibility of most nutrients. The relative weight (%) of the gizzard was increased (P < or = 0.001) and the pH of its contents was reduced (P < or = 0.001) when additional fiber was included in the diet. The TTAR of nutrients was higher for the SO than for the YG diets (P < or = 0.001). Also, the increases in ether extract digestibility (P < or = 0.05) and AME(n) (P < or = 0.05) of the diet with fiber inclusion were more pronounced with the YG than with the SO. Therefore, the inclusion of moderate amounts of fiber in the diet might improve performance and nutrient digestibility in young chicks, especially when saturated fats are used.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of various organic and organic-mineral biofilter media in purifying ventilation exhaust from a chicken hatchery room. Three different substrates were tested. Efficiency levels for the removal of dust, gram-negative bacteria, and bacterial endotoxin were recorded. The microbiological properties of the substrates were also studied. All of the biofilter substrates were highly effective in removing gram-negative bacteria, moderately effective in reducing dust levels, and only slightly effective in removing endotoxin. The substrate that was most efficient in retaining bioaerosols was the organic-mineral medium containing 20% halloysite, 40% compost, and 40% peat, which generally had at least satisfactory efficiency values for removing all of the contaminants tested.

The efficacy of a laboratory electrocoagulation (EC) system for treating egg processing plant waste-water (WW) is reported. For simulated and industrial egg processing WW, chemical oxygen demand, turbidity, and total suspended solids (TSS) were reduced 92 to 97%, 97%, and 99%, respectively, after treatment with EC. The final TSS concentration and turbidity values were 30 mg/L and 5 formazin turbidity units (FTU), respectively, similar to that of potable water standards. The recovered by-product solids had a similar pattern of essential amino acids compared to that of liquid whole egg and were comparable to the Food Agriculture Organization's essential amino acid profile for an ideal protein. The relative protein digestibilities of the recovered solids and a commercial corn meal averaged 130 and 56%, respectively, compared to liquid whole egg (set at 100%). An economic analysis of EC indicated that this treatment is economically feasible in that a savings of approximately $425,000 per year is possible in addition to recovering the capital equipment costs after about 14 mo of operation. These findings demonstrate that EC can be successfully applied to treat egg processing plant WW, yielding a high quality water suitable for recycling and valuable by-products having a highly digestible protein and fat value.

A study was conducted to determine the general composition of equilibrated poultry chiller water (near maximum solids content) from a commercial operation, the chlorine consumption by its components, and the chlorine dosage necessary to achieve its disinfection. The equilibrated chiller water contained .35% (CV, 40%) solids, which consisted of lipids (56%), ash (33%), and total nitrogen (4.2%). Residual chlorine and survival of aerobic bacteria were determined in chiller water dosed with chlorine levels ranging from 0 to 400 ppm. Initially, the added chlorine was rapidly consumed by the components of chiller water. However, the consumption rate quickly decreased to 1/1,000 of the initial rate after about 50 min. The change of residual chlorine with time was found to fit mathematically to a two-term exponential equation. The equilibrated chiller water had a chlorine demand greater than the highest chlorine dosage tested (400 ppm). No free chlorine was detected in the water after 30 min of exposure to 300 ppm chlorine. Because of the high chlorine demand, dosages of 100 to 150 ppm chlorine were required to reduce the number of bacteria by at least 99% within 3 to 5 min in laboratory tests. Increasing the time of exposure to chlorine resulted in further reduction, although at a slow rate, of surviving bacteria from treatments that gave incomplete destruction with short exposure.

The microcidal efficiency of a new pelleting process was evaluated in four trials. Also, different methods of measuring temperature and moisture were compared and attempts were made to determine the influence on efficiency of pH changes occurring during processing. In the new process, the traditional boiler-conditioner was replaced by an Anaerobic Pasteurizing Conditioning (APC) System. Microcidal efficiency of the APC System, by itself or in conjunction with a pellet mill, appeared to be 100% against Escherichia coli and nonlactose-fermenters, 99% against aerobic mesophiles, and 90% against fungi. These levels of efficiency were attained when the temperature and moisture of feed conditioned in the APC System for 4.6 +/- .5 min were 82.9 +/- 2.4 C and 14.9 +/- .3%, respectively. On-line temperature probes were reliable and provided quick, accurate estimates of feed temperature. The near infrared scanner and microwave oven methods of measuring moisture were much quicker but less accurate than the in vacuo method. There were no differences among the pH of samples of raw, conditioned, and pelleted feed.

Field trials were conducted in commercial broiler houses to test the effects of various light sources (incandescent and fluorescent) and light intensity on BW, feed conversion, mortality, condemnations, field defects, electrical usage, and electrical costs. Light sources included: 15- and 40-W incandescent lamps; 5 and 9-W compact, fluorescent lamps; and 40-W, 1.2-m fluorescent tube lamps. Type of lamp had no significant effect on bird performance measurements but did directly affect light intensity and lighting electricity costs. Light intensity was adequate in all instances and did not affect performance. Fluorescent lamps significantly reduced lighting electricity costs without any detrimental effect on broiler performance in comparison to standard low wattage incandescent lights.

AN INVESTIGATION of free amino acids in chickens using paper chromatography has been published by Chubb (1959). The amino acids reported in his work were found in the urine, blood and body tissues of normal birds. However, there is no information regarding free amino acids found in chickens and their relationship to avian lymphomatosis. This paper reports chromatographic investigations of the free amino acids in the cloacal waste from newly hatched unfed chicks. Throughout the investigations, all free amino acids were examined for a correlation between their occurrence and subsequent occurrence of avian lympho-matosis. It became apparent that only histidine exhibited this correlation. EXPERIMENTAL Samples of cloacal waste were collected from newly hatched, unfed chicks evacuated within five hours after removal from hatching trays. The excrement was collected in individual test tubes and only the samples from female chicks were used unless otherwise noted. Ethyl alcohol was added to the…

IN MOST of our previous studies on the bacteriology of soiled eggs treated in various ways, a considerable number of eggs had large quantities of material such as manure, soil, yolk, etc. adhering to the shells. Such eggs are considered “heavy dirties” by the trade, and are difficult to clean properly. Only slightly soiled eggs, i.e., “light dirties” were used in this investigation. The objective was to compare the efficiency of some wet cleaning treatments versus dry cleaning (sanding) to prevent penetration of spoilage bacteria. Only slightly dirty eggs could be adequately cleaned by the commercial sanding machine available in a local plant. Miller (1954) using plating methods during a storage period of several months, found that hand buffing dirty eggs with sand paper was as efficient and in some instances more efficient, in preventing penetration of bacteria, compared to hand washing in a “household” detergent, or a combination of …

IN A previous paper by Baker et al. (1957) the effects of feeding Nicarbazin to laying hens on the yolk quality of their eggs was described. Neither the nature of the damage to the yolk nor the mechanisms involved in causing the damage were known. Experiments were designed to study the possible mechanisms involved. MATERIALS AND METHODS Eggs were obtained from hens fed Nicarbazin. The scoring system used to estimate yolk damage was the same as described previously (Baker et al., 1957). Water uptake of the yolk was determined according to the method of Orru (1939). The intact yolk was dried on filter paper, placed in a tared beaker and covered with the experimental solution. The system was incubated at 37°C. for 3 hours, the fluid drained off and the last traces of solution removed with filter paper by rolling the yolk over the paper. It proved to be practically . . .

The opinion might easily be formed from glancing at the title of this paper that I intended to convey information relating to the pure economic side of the experience I have gathered during my last few years of practicing the science of poultry husbandry along settlement lines. If this opinion is formed I must here state that such is not my intention. This side of the Soldier Settlement Board in Canada or of the poultry work done under the same in my territory is too large a factor to discourse on in the short time I have at my disposal but information relating to this work could probably be obtained from Ottawa. By many the opinion might be formed that such a subject is hardly worth consideration. I might have chosen other titles but I considered that this one gave more scope for a short paper. Working along lines where . . .

The development and application of an automated weighing and analysis system for growth and feed efficiency studies are described. The system consists of an electronic balance connected, via a BCD interface cable, to a portable desk-top computer. Integral features of the computer are a display, paper tape printer, and a cassette tape drive for programs and data storage, all of which are necessary for efficient data procurement. Twenty-four pens of chicks and the remaining feed can be weighed, with electronic weight transfer to the computer, and a comprehensive output of raw data, calculated results, and statistical analyses can be obtained in approximately 1 hr. No manual data entries or calculations are necessary after weighing has been initiated. The results of a chick growth and feed efficiency experiment are presented.