scholarly journals Alfalfa Hay Supplementary Intake is Advancing Effect To Rumen Fermentation and Microbial Function of Gansu Alpine Fine Wool Sheep During Cold Season

Author(s):  
Jia Jianlei ◽  
Zhang Liping ◽  
Guo Wujun ◽  
Hou Guangtian ◽  
Wu Jianping ◽  
...  

Abstract Bodyweight loss and rumen microbial dysfunction of grazing sheep was a challenge for the sheep production industry during cold season, which were considered to correlated with under-roughage-feeding. The objective of our research was to assess the role of Alfalfa hay supplementary intake in roughage in ewes’ rumen fermentation and microbial function. 120 ewes were allocated randomly into 4 groups, and were fed with different level of alfalfa hay, respectively. Individual ewes’ bodyweight, blood biochemical indexes and rumen microbial characteristics were analyzed after the end of feeding trials. The results showed that alfalfa hay supplementary could significantly enhance sheep body weight, nitrogen components (Total-N, Soluble protein-N and Ammonia-N), blood biochemical indices (LDH, BUN and CHO) and ruminal volatile fatty acids (P < 0.05). Meantime, alfalfa hay supplementary increased the richness and diversity of ruminal fluid microbiota, and decreased ruminal fluid microbiota beta-diversity. The ruminal fluid microbiota of alfalfa hay supplementary feeding showed low immune pathway and high carbohydrate metabolism pathway. Overall, the study suggested that there was an increasing tendency of alfalfa-hay-supplementary group in 30% Yellow Maize Silage + 70% Alfalfa Hay roughage in body weight, ruminal fermentation and microbial function, which improved GS performance through developing hay supplementary system during cold season.

2019 ◽  
Vol 64 (No. 9) ◽  
pp. 367-376 ◽  
Author(s):  
Szandra Tóth ◽  
Melinda Kovács ◽  
Brigitta Bóta ◽  
Judit Szabó-Fodor ◽  
Gábor Bakos ◽  
...  

The objective of this study was to compare the effects of calf starters of different starch and fibre content on the growth, blood and rumen parameters of Holstein female calves during the pre-weaning period. A total of 60 calves were divided into two groups. Group A/B was fed according to a two-phase calf nutrition system: the calves received calf starter “A” (28.5% starch content, 16% neutral detergent fibre (NDF), 9.2% acid detergent fibre (ADF)) in days 7–45 and then calf starter “B” (14.2% starch content, 32.4% NDF, 14.3% ADF) in days 46–70. Calves of group B received calf starter “B” throughout the experimental period. The calves were weaned between 52 and 61 days of life. The data on body weight, weight gain, starter feed intake, blood metabolites and rumen fermentation parameters were collected individually. In the first phase of experiment, the starter feed consumption of A/B group was higher than that of B group (P &lt; 0.05), but it did not manifest in differences in body weight at weaning time. At some of the sampling times, the different composition of starter diets significantly (P &lt; 0.05) influenced the plasma urea, albumin, glucose and triglyceride concentrations. The consumption of diet with different starch and NDF content had no significant effect either on the composition of the rumen microbiota or on the ruminal concentration of volatile fatty acids (VFA) and ammonia. In some cases significant correlations (–0.83 and –0.93; 0.82 and 0.90) were found between the composition of rumen microbiota and ruminal VFA concentration. Feeding a diet of higher starch content (28.5 vs 14.2%) in the first 45 days of life did not affect rumen fermentation, rumen microbiota and the most important blood metabolites, apart from a few exceptions. The production parameters of calves, including total feed intake and body weight gain, were similar in the experiment.


2006 ◽  
Vol 54 (3) ◽  
pp. 333-342 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Jurkovich ◽  
J. Kutasi ◽  
Hedvig Fébel ◽  
J. Reiczigel ◽  
E. Brydl ◽  
...  

A study was conducted to obtain data on the effects of a fungal fibrolytic enzyme preparation (Rumino-zyme, with 250 FXU/g xylanase activities) from Thermomyces lanuginosus on some rumen fermentation parameters in sheep. Ruminal fluid samples were taken just before the morning feeding and then 2 h and 4 h after feeding. Xylanase activity, pH, concentration of ammonia and volatile fatty acids were measured. The enzyme supplementation did not affect the pH but increased the xylanase activity and the total VFA concentration of the rumen fluid. The molar proportion of acetate increased, propionate was not affected and butyrate decreased after enzyme administration. The concentration of ammonia also decreased after supplementation with the enzyme product. It can be concluded that the xylanase enzyme preparation from T. lanuginosus induced favourable changes in the major rumen fermentation parameters in sheep.


2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. e0609
Author(s):  
Hassan S. Mohamed-Ali ◽  
Khalid A. Abdoun ◽  
Emad M. Samara ◽  
Mohamed A. Al-Badwi ◽  
Aly B. Okab ◽  
...  

Aim of the study: To investigate the direct effect of heat stress on rumen fermentation characteristics and nutrients degradability of pair-fed rams to subsequently eliminate the confounding effects of dissimilar feed intake induced by heat stress exposure.Area of study: Saudi Arabia.Material and methods: Five rumen-cannulated desert rams (45 ± 1.63 kg body weight; 2–3 years of age) were placed individually in controlled climatic-chambers to be exposed to two successive periods. The 1st period was a control thermoneutral period (TN; 23.64 ± 0.14 °C; extended for 21 days) followed by a 2nd period of heat stress (HS; 44.26 ± 1.70 °C, for another 21 days). Each period was consisted of a temperature acclimation phase (7 days) and a data collection phase (14 days). Alfalfa hay was offered twice daily during both periods in a pair-fed manner (800 g DM per head and day).Main results: Exposing pair-fed desert rams to elevated ambient temperature had (p<0.05) elevated their respiration rate and skin temperature, without noticeable (p>0.05) changes in their rectal temperature. Most of the rumen fermentation characteristics and nutrients degradability were not affected by HS (p>0.05). However, exposure to HS increased (p<0.05) pre-feeding rumen total volatile fatty acids concentrations, pre-feeding molar proportion of acetate, and post-feeding rumen osmolality.Research highlights: HS had no direct effect on post-feeding rumen fermentation characteristics and nutrients degradability in desert sheep. This implies that strategic approaches to mitigate the adverse effects of HS have to be directed towards promoting feed intake and nutrients utilization under such conditions.


1998 ◽  
Vol 22 ◽  
pp. 303-305 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. D. Carro ◽  
S. Lopez ◽  
C. Valdes ◽  
F. J. Ovejero

In the last few years there has been an increasing concern regarding the use of antibiotics in ruminant feeding and the potential for selection of antibiotic-resistant pathogen micro-organisms. Some authors (Martin and Streeter, 1995; Callaway and Martin, 1996) suggested that organic acids (aspartate, fumarate, malate) potentially provide an alternative to currently used antimicrobial compounds. Several in vitro studies (Martin and Streeter, 1995; Callaway and Martin, 1996) showed that incorporation of DL-malate into fermentations with both Selenomonas ruminantium HD4 and with mixed ruminal micro-organisms resulted in changes in final pH, methane and volatile fatty acids (VFA) that are analogous to ionophore effects. Nisbet and Martin (1993) hypothesized that malate acted as an electron sink for hydrogen. However, the mechanism of action is not well known. Malate is a key intermediate in the succinate-propionate pathway and therefore could stimulate propionate production. The objective of this study was to study the effects of DL-malate and propionate on the in vitro rumen fermentation of a 50:50 foragexoncentrate diet.The study was carried out using the rumen simulation technique (RUSITEC) following the general incubation procedure described by Czerkawski and Breckenridge (1977). The complete unit consisted of eight vessels with an effective volume of 700 ml each. The vessels inocula (solid and liquid) were obtained from three ruminally fistulated ewes given a diet consisting of 700 g alfalfa hay and 300 g concentrate per kg dry matter (DM) (Table 1) and transferred to the RUSITEC system within 30 min of the 1st day of the experiment. The flow through the vessels was maintained by continuous infusion of artificial saliva at a rate of 533 ml/day. Each vessel received daily a nylon bag containing 7 g alfalfa hay, 7 g concentrate and 0·10 g vitaminsminerals mix. From the 1st day of incubation three vessels received daily 5·62 mmol DL-malate (disodium salt; Sigma-Aldrich Quimica, S.A., Spain), three vessels received 5·62 mmol of propionate (monosodium salt; Sigma-Aldrich Quimica, S.A., Spain) and two vessels received no addition (control). DL-malate and propionate were weighed into the nylon bags and carefully mixed with the food.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yong Li ◽  
Yanli Guo ◽  
Chengxin Zhang ◽  
Xiaofang Cai ◽  
Peng Liu ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTThis study aimed to evaluate the effects of starter feeds of different physical forms on rumen fermentation and microbial composition for lambs. Twenty-four eight-day-old male Hu lambs (5.04 ± 0.75 kg body weight) were fed either milk replacer (MR) and pelleted starter feed (PS), or MR and textured starter feed (TS) in pre-weaning (day 8 to 35) and post-weaning (day 36 to 42) lambs. And the MR was fed by bottles to lambs at 2% of body weight at day 8 divided as three equal amounts at 08:00, 14:00 and 20:00 in pre-weaning. And the lambs were readily availed starter feeds and clean fresh water in the whole experiment. Six lambs for each treatment were euthanized at day 21 or 42 for sampling. The results showed the total volatile fatty acids, propionate and butyrate of rumen liquid in TS groups were all higher than them in PS groups respectively for pre-weaning and post-weaning lambs (P < 0.05), and the pH of rumen liquid in TS group was lower than it in PS group for post-weaning lambs (P < 0.05). Moreover, the pH of rumen and OTUs in TS group had trends to lower than them in PS group for pre-weaned lambs (P = 0.061, P = 0.066). TS established the predominant Phylum, Bacteroidetes, earlier than PS, and increased significantly the relative abundances of Sharpea compared to PS at level of genus (P < 0.05) for pre-weaning and post-weaning lambs. TS were more benefits to trigger rumen development for lambs.IMPORTANCEEarly use of starter feed could trigger rumen fermentation and establishment of dominant flora, which were in favour of growth and development of rumen for ruminants. The physical form of starter feed is one of the important factors to promote rumen fermentation and establishment of dominant flora for ruminants of transition. However, limited study on effects of physical forms of starter feeds, especially the texturized starters containing steam-flaked grains, to rumen fermentative pattern and microbial composition for pre-weaning and post-weaning lambs to date. It was necessary to investigate the effects of physical form of starter feed on rumen fermentation and microbial composition for lambs. The significance of our research showed TS were better benefits to promote the rumen fermentation and establishment of dominant flora for lambs, which will greatly enhance our understanding of physical forms of starter feeds, leading to broader studies on rumen development for lambs.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xing-Zhou Tian ◽  
Jia-Xuan Li ◽  
Qing-Yuan Luo ◽  
Di Zhou ◽  
Qing-Meng Long ◽  
...  

The objective of this study was to observe the effects of anthocyanin from purple corn on blood biochemical indexes, ruminal fluid fermentation parameters, and the microbial population in goats. A total of 18 Qianbei Ma wether kids (body weight, 21.38 ± 1.61 kg; mean ± standard deviation) were randomly assigned to three groups using a completely randomized design. The group diets were: (1) control, basal diet, (2) treatment 1 (LA), basal diet with 0.5-g/d purple corn pigment (PCP), and (3) treatment 2 (HA), basal diet with 1-g/d PCP. The results showed that supplementation of PCP anthocyanin increased (P &lt; 0.05) crude protein and gross energy digestibilities compared to the control. Compared to the control group, the inclusion of anthocyanin-rich PCP led to significantly increased (P &lt; 0.05) plasma reduced glutathione and peroxidase concentrations. Goats receiving PCP had increased (P &lt; 0.05) ruminal fluid acetic acid and a higher ratio of acetate to propionate, while the propionic acid, butyric acid, valeric acid, isobutyric acid, and isovaleric acid levels had decreased (P &lt; 0.05). There was no significant difference (P &gt; 0.05) in ruminal fluid alpha bacterial diversity among the three groups. At the phylum level, the feeding of PCP had significant effect (P &lt; 0.05) on the abundances of Actinobacteriota, Proteobacteria, Elusimicrobiota, WPS-2, and Cyanobacteria. At the genus level, HA group had lower (P &lt; 0.05) Prevotellaceae_NK3B31_group abundance compared to the other groups. In addition, significant differences (P &lt; 0.05) were also observed for the ruminal fluid Eubacterium_nodatum_group, Amnipila, Ruminiclostridium, U29-B03, unclassified_c_Clostridia, Pyramidobacter, Anaeroplasma, UCG-004, Atopobium, norank_f_norank_o_Bradymonadales, Elusimicrobium, norank_f_norank_o_norank_c_norank_p_WPS-2, norank_f_Bacteroidales_UCG-001, and norank_f_norank_o_Gastranaerophilales among all groups. Taken together, the inclusion of anthocyanin-rich PCP increased the antioxidant potential, improved rumen volatile fatty acids, and induced a shift in the structure and relative abundance of ruminal microbiota in growing goats.


PeerJ ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. e11520
Author(s):  
Anum Ali Ahmad ◽  
Jian Bo Zhang ◽  
Zeyi Liang ◽  
Chao Yang ◽  
Qudratullah Kalwar ◽  
...  

This study aimed to explore the rumen bacterial community of yak in response to dietary supplements during the cold season. In addition, the rumen fermentation products were also analyzed. Twenty-one female domestic yaks were randomly divided into three groups i.e., pure grazing (GG) group, grazing plus oats hay supplement (OG) group, and grazing plus concentrate supplement group (CG). Rumen contents were collected after 90 days to assess rumen fermentation parameters and bacterial community. The GC group presented higher concentrations of ammonia nitrogen (P < 0.001), and total volatile fatty acids (TVFA) (P < 0.001), and lower rumen pH (P < 0.001) compared to other experimental groups. The CG group displayed higher proportions of propionate, butyrate, isobutyrate, and isovalerate while lower A/P ratio compared to other experimental groups. Shannon, Chao1, and ACE values were significantly lower in the OG group compared to GG and CG groups. Anosim test showed significant differences in bacterial community structure between groups but the PCA plot was not very informative to see these differences. Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria, and Firmicutes were the three dominant phyla in all groups. The genera Oscillospira was more abundant in GG and OG groups. Higher relative abundance of Ruminococcus and Clostridium was observed in the GG group, while Ruminobacter, Corynebacterium, and Selenomonas were more abundant in the CG group. These findings will help in improving our understanding of rumen bacteria in yaks in response to changes in diet.


2011 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 1367-1378 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Petkova ◽  
S. Grigorova ◽  
D. Abadjieva

Crude fibers (CF) take a special place in the growing rabbit`s nutrition. In depend on their origin and composition, CF have digestibility 17- 25% in the roughages and up to 40-50% in the green and concentrate feeds. They are very important in the regulation of the processes of both digestibility and bacterial synthesis. The optimal CF quantity for growing rabbits is 12-15%. Alfalfa hay is preferred source of CF for rabbits, but it is too expensive. But, there are other sources of CF which are more suitable because of their price are lower. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of different sources of CF in the mixed rations for rabbits on blood biochemical changes, Volatile Fatty Acids (VFA) production in the ceacum and some fermentative parameters. In this respect we have interest to study the next sources of crude fibers: dry distillers` grain of wheat (DDGSw), produced by Bulgarian firm as a source except for crude fiber - 13% and crude protein (CP) also - 32%; meadow hay and as well as wheat straw as main and chipper sources of CF in the growing rabbits diets. Three compound feeds were prepared. All compound feeds contained 20% oats, 15% barley, 16.40%wheat bran, 10% soybean meal, 5% sunflower meal. The main sources of CF for the diets were: 30% Alfalfa hay (control group); 10% DDGSw + 20% meadow hay (Experimental group I, EG I) and 15% DDGSw + 15% wheat straw (Experimental group II, EG II). The obtained results showed that there were no any incidences of digestive disorders in all investigated groups. Improvement of cecal fermentation led to better NGR and FOM. We made conclusion that DDGSw in combine with meadow hay or wheat straw could use as alternative sources of CF for growing rabbits.


2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (02) ◽  
pp. 14-17
Author(s):  
K K Hadiya ◽  
A J Dhami ◽  
D V Chaudhari ◽  
P M Lunagariya

This study was initiated on 24 prepubertal Holstein x Kankrej crossbred heifers of nearly identical age (7-9 months) and body weight (130-140 kg) at University farm to evaluate the effect of high plane of nutrition on blood biochemical and minerals profile and the age at puberty. Twelve heifers were managed under routine farm feeding (control) and the rest 12 under ideal optimum feeding regime (treatment) that included extra 1 kg concentrate, 30 g min mix and ad-lib dry fodder. The body weight and ovarian ultrasonography together with blood sampling was carried out at monthly interval from 10 to 18 months of age to study the ovarian dynamics and blood biochemical changes. High plane of nutrition to growing heifers was beneficial in reducing the age of onset of puberty (by 2-3 months) compared to routine farm fed group. The mean plasma total protein and cholesterol concentrations showed a rising trend with significant variations from 10 to 16 months of age, where it got mostly stabilized indicating adult profile. The activity of enzymes GOT and GPT also rose gradually and significantly from 10 months till 14-15 months of age, and thereafter it remained more or less static till 18 months of age. The levels of both these enzymes were higher, with lower protein and cholesterol, in control than the treatment group from 15-16 months of age onwards. The mean plasma levels of both calcium and phosphorus increased gradually and significantly with advancing age till 16-17 months of age, with little higher values in supplemented than a control group. The plasma levels of zinc, iron, copper, and cobalt also showed rising trend with significant differences between 10th and 12th-14th months of age, and from 15th to 18th months of age the levels were statistically the same in all the groups with slightly higher values in the treatment group.


Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 108
Author(s):  
Yichong Wang ◽  
Sijiong Yu ◽  
Yang Li ◽  
Shuang Zhang ◽  
Xiaolong Qi ◽  
...  

Nutritional strategies can be employed to mitigate greenhouse emissions from ruminants. This article investigates the effects of polyphenols extracted from the involucres of Castanea mollissima Blume (PICB) on in vitro rumen fermentation. Three healthy Angus bulls (350 ± 50 kg), with permanent rumen fistula, were used as the donors of rumen fluids. A basic diet was supplemented with five doses of PICB (0%–0.5% dry matter (DM)), replicated thrice for each dose. Volatile fatty acids (VFAs), ammonia nitrogen concentration (NH3-N), and methane (CH4) yield were measured after 24 h of in vitro fermentation, and gas production was monitored for 96 h. The trial was carried out over three runs. The results showed that the addition of PICB significantly reduced NH3-N (p < 0.05) compared to control. The 0.1%–0.4% PICB significantly decreased acetic acid content (p < 0.05). Addition of 0.2% and 0.3% PICB significantly increased the propionic acid content (p < 0.05) and reduced the acetic acid/propionic acid ratio, CH4 content, and yield (p < 0.05). A highly significant quadratic response was shown, with increasing PICB levels for all the parameters abovementioned (p < 0.01). The increases in PICB concentration resulted in a highly significant linear and quadratic response by 96-h dynamic fermentation parameters (p < 0.01). Our results indicate that 0.2% PICB had the best effect on in-vitro rumen fermentation efficiency and reduced greenhouse gas production.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document