THE INFLUENCE OF INGESTED ESTROGENS ON FEED INTAKE, METABOLIC RATE AND LIPEMIA IN MALE FOWL

Abstract

DURING a series of experiments which were designed for the purpose of studying the several reactions of male birds to treatments with synthetic estrogens, it was repeatedly observed that the experimental birds had a notably greater feed intake than their controls. Similar observations were made by Thayer, Jaap and Penquite (1944-1945) but left by these authors as an unexplained fact, whereas Kempster and Turner (1945) argued that augmented feed intake would be a reasonable corollary to higher fat metabolism per se. Since the control birds of the present experiments weighed on the average as much as the treated birds, gained approximately as much in weight due, undoubtedly, to the nearly equal fat deposition and metabolised approximately equal amounts of fat this explanation seemed inadequate and a study of this phenomenon was therefore undertaken.