Revue d’Elevage et de Médecine Vétérinaire des Pays Tropicaux (Feb 2008)
Multivariate Analyses of the Effect of Feed Diet on the Mobilization of Fat Reserves in the One-Humped Camel
Abstract
The study of the distribution of the number of adipocytes by size classes showed that all sizes were represented in all she-camels studied, but in variable proportions. The variability of the proportions helped to characterize fat from lean animals with the following practical result: the adipocyte profile of fat animals was characterized by the prevailing cells of size classes 87.5, 100, 112.5 and 125 µm, which were highly correlated. It is thus conceivable that monitoring dynamics of body reserves in camels could be carried out based on any one of these classes. A typology of the animals based on their adipocyte profiles showed high heterogeneity of individuals within the same group. This heterogeneity became less apparent toward the end of the trial period, when individuals in a group had been administered the same diet, and when fat and lean adipocyte profiles were better distinguished. The typologies obtained at the beginning and at the end of the experiment showed that the animals were grouped differently and thus that there was a high interaction between animal adipocyte profiles and diet, confirming a high interaction between the two.
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