Effect of dietary sorbose on lipid metabolism in male and female broilers.

Male and female broilers were given diets (6 males and 6 females per diet) containing varying percentages of sorbose (0, 3, 6, and 9%) and fed for ad libitum access from 28 to 56 days of age. Body weight gain and feed intake were decreased with increasing dietary sorbose, particularly in male birds fed diets containing 9% sorbose, although feed efficiency and N retention rate were not influenced by dietary treatments. Absolute and relative abdominal fat weights were higher in females than in males and decreased with the increasing levels of dietary sorbose in both sexes. Fat content in the pectoral muscle also decreased as dietary sorbose increased. Dietary sorbose did not have significant effects on serum glucose, triglyceride, total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein, very low density lipoprotein, and chylomicron levels in either male or female birds. The ME values of diets decreased as dietary sorbose increased. Palmitic acid content of abdominal fat was significantly lower in birds fed the 9% sorbose diet than in birds fed the control diet. The reverse was true for linoleic acid content. It was concluded that dietary sorbose can be used as a potential regulator of lipid deposition in broilers.