This experiment was carried out with 58-week old laying quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica) assigned to
four treatment groups with eight quails per replication in six repetitions in a completely randomized
design. The treatments consisted of diets with different levels of flaxseed (0, 1.5, 3.0, and 5.0%). The
amounts of cholesterol and total lipids and the fatty acid composition of quail egg yolk were determined
in four 21-day cycles. No difference was found in cholesterol levels between the four treatments and the
four cycles. The increased ingestion of linolenic acid (LNA) in diet reduced the formation of arachidonic
acid (AA) significantly. The 3.0 and 5.0% treatment groups presented a reduction in total saturated fatty
acids (TSFA) with the increase in percent flaxseed in feed comparatively to the control value. The n-3
fatty acid level was high in all treatments when compared to that of the control group. The n-6/n-3 ratio
decreased from 21.30 (control) to 4.52 (5.0%), which is a better value from the nutritional viewpoint.