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Proposed Mechanisms for the Regulation of Growth Hormone Action in Poultry: Metabolic Effects¹

Department of Poultry Science, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802

Growth hormone (GH) administration to nonruminant red meat animals markedly alters carcass composition so that dramatic reductions in adipose tissue accretion and enhancement of lean tissue growth occur. These repartitioning effects of GH in the pig are reported to reflect antagonism of the lipogenic effect of insulin on adipose tissue, the primary site of fatty acid synthesis in this species, so that glucose disposal and utilization by adipose tissue are markedly reduced, and substrate availability to muscle is increased. In poultry, a significant positive response to GH administration is not consistently achieved, and factors such as post-hatch period of development and the pattern of tissue exposure to GH are important determinants of the response to GH enhancement. This may relate to the status of target tissue GH receptors that appear subject to down regulation in the adult chicken. Sensitivity of the bird to the appetite-suppressive effects of GH and interaction between this effect and energy intake have recently been demonstrated and need to be further explored. Growth hormone clearly influences hepatic lipogenesis and net lipid deposition in the broiler chicken. However, future research emphasis on the regulation of GH receptor binding activity and gene expression and their relationship to GH action, as well as on newer components of the GH axis such as GH-binding proteins, will help to clarify controlling mechanisms in poultry.

KEY WORDS: • poultry • growth hormone • lipid metabolism • receptor

¹ Presented as part of the 59th Annual Poultry Nutrition Conference: Metabolic Modifiers, given at the Experimental Biology '94 meeting, Anaheim, CA, on April 24, 1994. This conference was sponsored by the American Institute of Nutrition and was supported by grants from Merck Sharp and Dohme Research Laboratories, Smith Kline Beecham Animal Health Products, Perdue Farms Inc., Kemin Industries Inc., and Prince Agri Products, Inc. The guest editor for this conference was Theodore H. Elsasser, Ruminant Nutrition Lab, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD.

² To whom correspondence should be addressed: 203 William L. Henning Building, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802.