The influence of selection in wild pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) breeding on reproduction and the involvement of the chemerin system

Chemerin is a hormone produced mainly by adipose tissue and liver. We have recently shown that it is locally produced in the reproductive tract in hens, particularly at the magnum level, leading to its accumulation in the egg albumen. We have also determined that chemerin is necessary for egg fertilization, embryo development, and angiogenesis within the chorio-allantoic membrane in chicken species. We, therefore, hypothesize that chemerin, widely present in various gallinacean species, could be a marker of egg fertility in this animal order. To demonstrate this, we used a model close to the hen: the pheasant. By RT-qPCR, we have shown that chemerin and its three receptors CMKLR1, GPR1, and CCRL2 are expressed in the reproductive tract of females. In addition, chemerin is also produced predominantly in the magnum and accumulates in the egg albumen as determined by immunoblot. We then compared two lines of pheasants with different reproductive characteristics: the F11 and F22 breeds. F22 lays more eggs than F11, but have significantly lower fertility and hatchability rates. In addition, F22 exhibit a significantly lower amount of chemerin protein in their magnum (P < 0.01) and in the egg albumen (P < 0.0001) compared to F11. Finally, we observed a positive correlation between the chemerin amount in the albumen of F11 eggs and the hatching rate of the eggs (r = 0.5; P = 0.04) as well as a negative correlation between the chemerin quantity in the albumen of F22 eggs and the rate of unfertilized eggs (r = −0.37; P = 0.04). Finally, chemerin system (ligand and receptors) is also expressed within embryo annexes (chorioallantoic and amniotic membranes) during incubation. These data demonstrate an interspecies conservation of chemerin production in the magnum, its accumulation in the egg albumen and its possible use as a marker for determining the quality of eggs in term of fertility and embryo development.