Table 1.
Liver weights (LW), gross chemical composition, and color parameters of livers from the different studied groups (n = 12 birds/groups).
| Parameters | 550 – 599 g | 600 – 649 g | 650 – 699 g | >700 g | P. value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LW (g) | 576 ± 17a | 626 ± 16b | 676 ± 14c | 767 ± 36d | ∗∗∗ |
| Lipids (% of dry matter) | 57.1 ± 0.9 | 57.2 ± 1.7 | 57.4 ± 1.1 | 57.9 ± 1.2 | NS |
| Dry matter (% of raw weight) | 70.2 ± 0.9 | 70.4 ± 1.4 | 70.6 ± 1 | 70.9 ± 1.4 | NS |
| Proteins (% of dry matter) | 7.03 ± 0.43a | 6.93 ± 0.44a | 6.47 ± 0.43b | 6 ± 0.43c | ∗∗∗ |
| L∗ | 71.4 ± 1.4 | 71.4 ± 1.9 | 71.4 ± 1.6 | 72.4 ± 1.5 | NS |
| a∗ | 9.34 ± 0.94 | 9.32 ± 1.6 | 9.52 ± 1.43 | 9.01 ± 0.93 | NS |
| b∗ | 29.06 ± 1.61 | 29.67 ± 2.13 | 28.8 ± 1.74 | 28.33 ± 1.64 | NS |
Values are means ± SD. Within a line, values with different superscripts differ significantly (∗P ≤ 0.05, ∗∗P ≤ 0.01, ∗∗∗P ≤ 0.001, and NS: not significant).