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Two experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of incubational oxygen concentration on fatty acid metabolism and heme synthesis in broiler breeder embryos. We measured the hepatic activities of δ-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase (ALAD) and 3-hydroxyacyle Co-A dehydrogenase (3-HADH) as these enzymes are the limiting steps in heme synthesis and fatty acid metabolism, respectively. We found no differences in ALAD activity between days 17 and 20 of incubation; we hypothesize that this is because heme synthesis is relatively constant at the later periods of embryonic development. 3-HADH activity was higher in chicks hatched from eggs incubated under low oxygen conditions during early incubation, while specific ALAD activity was reduced in this group as compared to controls.