Onset of Egg Production and its Relationship to Isoenzymes of Serum Alkaline Phosphatase in Japanese Quail

ELECTROPHORETIC separations of avian serum proteins have shown that some components are influenced by sex, age, and physiology. Kristjansson et al. (1963) demonstrated in chickens that the serum protein prealbumin B was present in laying females, but not in non-laying females, males or immature chickens. Qualitative and quantitative changes of 5 distinct serum protein components observed in the domestic fowl have been related to the onset and termination of egg production in females (Lush, 1963). Hashiguchi et al. (1968) found no sex-associated serum protein pattern in young Japanese quail or in adult males, but a new protein band designated as J was present in laying females. A change in the zymogram of serum alkaline phosphatase specifically associated with the onset of egg production in female Japanese quail is described in this report. MATERIALS AND METHODS The Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica) used in this research were derived from a population…