Different Photoperiodic Responses in Four Lines of Japanese Quail

Organisms measure day length to better adapt to seasonal changes in the environment; this phenomenon is called photoperiodism. The Japanese quail has a highly sophisticated photoperiodic mechanism and is an excellent model for the study of photoperiodism. Various lines of quail have been establish...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Yusuke Atsumi, Eriko Yorinaga, Wataru Ota, Takashi Yoshimura
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Japan Poultry Science Association 2016-01-01
Series:The Journal of Poultry Science
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/jpsa/53/1/53_0150097/_pdf/-char/en
Description
Summary:Organisms measure day length to better adapt to seasonal changes in the environment; this phenomenon is called photoperiodism. The Japanese quail has a highly sophisticated photoperiodic mechanism and is an excellent model for the study of photoperiodism. Various lines of quail have been established during the domestication process. In the present study, we examined the effect of long day (LD) followed by short day (SD) on testicular weight in four lines of quail (L, AMRP, NIES-Br, and WE). When the quail were raised under SD conditions, testicular development was suppressed in all examined lines. The speed of the LD-induced testicular development of NIES-Br line was faster than that of AMRP line, while the speed of the SD-induced testicular regression of L line was significantly faster than that of WE line. These quail lines provide excellent model to uncover the underlying mechanism of seasonal testicular regression.
ISSN:1346-7395
1349-0486