Klandorf H, Zhou Q, Sams A R
Division of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, West Virginia University, Morgantown 26506-6108, USA.
Poult Sci. 1996 Mar;75(3):432-7. doi: 10.3382/ps.0750432.
Aminoguanidine (AG) is a nucleophilic compound that inhibits nonenzymatic, glucose-derived collagen cross-linking in animal tissues. Whether AG can attenuate the accumulation of collagen cross-links in the Biceps femoris muscle of 64-wk-old broiler breeder hens as well as improve meat quality, was investigated. Eighty-four broiler breeder hens (30-wk-old) were divided into four equal groups. Each group was assigned randomly to diets supplemented with 0. 200, 400, or 800 ppm AG, respectively. Birds were fed individually, 150 g diet/d. After feeding AG for 34 wk, six birds from each group were killed and samples from the leg muscle were analyzed for changes in collagen content. Aminoguanidine decreased (P < 0.05) glucose-derived collagen cross-links in skeletal muscle as measured by fluorescence and collagen solubility. Insoluble collagen fraction decreased with increasing AG dosage, whereas acid-soluble and pepsin-soluble fractions increased with increasing AG dosage. Aminoguanidine did not affect shear force. In agreement with studies on animals with diabetes, AG is a potent inhibitor of glucose-derived cross-linking in chickens although the results from the measurements of shear force do not support its used for improving carcass quality in spent hens.
