Deprivation of Drinking Water for up to 48 Hours Does Not Affect the Osmotic Fragility of Erythrocytes from Captive Helmeted Guinea Fowl (Numida meleagris)


Authors

  • B. Mafuvadze Department of Preclinical, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Zimbabwe, P.O. Box MP167, Mt Pleasant Harare, Zimbabwe
  • M. Nyanungo Department of Preclinical, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Zimbabwe, P.O. Box MP167, Mt Pleasant Harare, Zimbabwe
  • H. Saina Henderson Research Station, Poultry Research Unit, P. Bag 2004, Mazowe, Zimbabwe
  • B. Gorejena Department of Preclinical, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Zimbabwe, P.O. Box MP167, Mt Pleasant Harare, Zimbabwe
  • T. Mashayamombe Department of Preclinical, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Zimbabwe, P.O. Box MP167, Mt Pleasant Harare, Zimbabwe
  • K.H. Erlwanger School of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of the Witwatersrand, 7 York Rd, Parktown 2193, Johannesburg, South Africa

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3923/ijps.2008.59.63

Keywords:

Erythrocyte osmotic fragility, guinea fowl, water deprivation

Abstract

Poor management practices may result in poultry having inadequate drinking water for prolonged periods and consequently adverse haematological effects. The effects of water deprivation for up to 48 hours on osmotic fragility of erythrocytes, plasma osmolarity and erythrocyte indices was investigated in eighteen, female Guinea fowl. Six birds had drinking water ad libitum and the other 12 were deprived of drinking water for up to 48 hours. Erythrocyte osmotic fragility was determined in serially diluted phosphate buffered saline. Deprivation of drinking water significantly (p < 0.05, ANOVA) decreased body mass (-7.9 ± 2.4% and -12.8 ± 3.2%, after 24 and 48 hours, respectively) but did not (p > 0.05) affect erythrocyte osmotic fragility. Water deprivation significantly (p < 0.05) increased plasma osmolarity and PCV but decreased the MCV. However, there was no significant difference (p > 0.05) in the osmolarities, PCVs and MCVs of the birds deprived of drinking water for 24 hours compared to those deprived for 48 hours.

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Published

2007-12-15

Issue

Vol. 7 No. 1 (2008)

Section

Research Article

License

Copyright (c) 2008 Asian Network for Scientific Information

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

How to Cite

Mafuvadze, B., Nyanungo, M., Saina, H., Gorejena, B., Mashayamombe, T., & Erlwanger, K. (2007). Deprivation of Drinking Water for up to 48 Hours Does Not Affect the Osmotic Fragility of Erythrocytes from Captive Helmeted Guinea Fowl (Numida meleagris). International Journal of Poultry Science, 7(1), 59–63. https://doi.org/10.3923/ijps.2008.59.63