Abstract
Improving feed efficiency is one of the main goals of chicken breeding and production. The function of the digestive system, where feed is digested and nutrients are absorbed, is closely related to feed efficiency. However, the association between feed efficiency and the development of different digestive organs in chickens remains unclear. Here, we investigated the individual feed efficiency of 207 broilers during the fast-growing period with an electronic feeder and examined the characteristics of 8 organs of their digestive system (the liver, bile, proventriculus, gizzard, duodenum, jejunum, ileum, and cecum) at market age. Both the feed conversion ratio (FCR) and residual feed intake (RFI) were significantly negatively correlated with the gizzard weight (GW) and significantly positively correlated with the relative weight of the liver (RLW). Additionally, we found an obvious negative relationship between the FCR and cecal length (CL). A two-tailed t test further confirmed these correlation analysis results. Specifically, compared to birds with the lowest feed efficiencies, the GW of broilers with the highest feed efficiencies (the lowest FCR or RFI) was 22.74% and 17.97% higher, respectively. The RLW of chickens with the highest feed efficiencies was 10.82 to 13.73% less than that of chickens with the lowest feed efficiencies. In addition, we found that increased CL (5.42-12.09%) was significantly associated with better feed efficiency. Thus, our study showed that the feed efficiency of broilers was related to the development of the gizzard, liver, and cecum. These findings provide new insight into the genetic and physiological regulation of feed efficiency in broilers.