Genetic parameters of egg weight, yolk weight and yolk fatty acids in Japanese quail

The aim of the present study was to investigate effect of additive genetic on egg weight, yolk weight and yolk fatty acid content and estimation of heritability for these traits. In this research, 150 white Japanese quails (50 males and 100 females) were used as the base population (without any pedigree information). In the F2 generation, 100 female quails were randomly selected at the fifth week of age and transferred to laying cages. The traits included egg weight, yolk weight and yolk fatty acid contents. (Co) Variance components and genetic parameters were estimated using multiple animal models by Wombat software. The estimated heritability for egg weight and yolk weight were 0.45 and 0.38, respectively. These estimates for yolk fatty acids ranged from 0.27 (Palmitoleic acid) to 0.45 (Palmetic acid). Genetic correlations between egg weight and yolk fatty acids were low, ranging from 0.01 (between egg weight and Linoleic acid) to 0.10 (between egg weight and Stearic acid). The higher genetic correlations were between yolk weight and yolk fatty acids, varying from 0.10 (between yolk weight and Linoleic acid) to 0.51 (between yolk weight and Stearic acid). The results showed that selection for increasing the yolk weight could lead to producing eggs with more contents of yolk fatty acids.