Reducing of Alkaloid Contents During the Process of Lactic Acid Silaging

The current study is conducted to investigate whether lupine grains can successfully be ensiled with residual moisture contents of around 65% and alkaloid contents can be reduced during the process of lactic acid formation by native and added lactic acid bacteria, respectively. Based on the fermentation quality of the sampled grain meal silage in the dry mass of 65% and further results, silaging is shown to be a suitable method of preservation. A reduction in the alkaloid content during the silaging cannot be assumed (statistical) due to the irregular dynamic of the observed content

“Wild barley serves as a source for biofortification of barley grains”

The continuing growth of the human population creates an inevitable necessity for higher crop yields, which are mandatory for the supply with adequate amounts of food. However, increasing grain yield may lead to a reduction of grain quality, such as a decline in protein and mineral nutrient concentrations causing the so-called hidden hunger. To assess the interdependence between quantity and quality and to evaluate the biofortification potential of wild barley, we conducted field studies, examining the interplay between plant development, yield, and nutrient concentrations, using HEB-YIELD, a subset of the wild barley nested association mapping population HEB-25. A huge variation of nutrient concentration in grains was obtained, since we identified lines with a more than 50% higher grain protein, iron, and zinc concentration in comparison to the recurrent parent ‘Barke’. We observed a negative relationship between grain yield and nutritional value in barley, indicated by predominantly negative correlations between yield and nutrient concentrations. Analyzing the genetic control of nutrient concentration in mature grains indicated that numerous genomic regions determine the final nutritional value of grains and wild alleles were frequently associated with higher nutrient concentrations. The targeted introgression of wild barley alleles may enable biofortification in future barley breeding.</p

The effect of crude protein content of the diet on renal energy losses in horses

Renal energy losses of horses are high in comparison with other species. In the present study, more data were obtained on this parameter to improve predictive equations for renal energy losses. Four adult ponies (247-344 kg body weight [BW]) were fed with eight different diets based on first cut hay, second cut hay, early first cut fresh grass, late cut herbs-grass mix, early cut clover-grass mix, sugar beet pulp, rice bran and straw. Feed intake was measured, and urine and faeces were quantitatively collected for 3 x 12 hr at daytime and afterwards 3 x 12 hr at nighttime. Feed was analysed for crude nutrients, gross energy, amino acids and neutral-detergent-insoluble crude protein (NDICP);faeces were analysed for crude nutrients and gross energy;and urine was analysed for nitrogen (N) and gross energy. Renal energy losses per gram dry matter (DM) intake (y;kJ/g DM) were strictly correlated to protein content in DM (x;g/kg DM): y = 0.325 + 0.00431x;r(2) = .81;n = 38;p < .001. The data suggest that the intercept represents energy losses by detoxification products such as hippuric acid and the regression coefficient by protein metabolites such as urea

Peat and disinfectant powder used in swine husbandry systems : quantification of oral intake using toxic metals as potential markers

The use of enrichment and bedding materials in pig husbandry intends to comply with the animals’ behavioural needs to perform natural exploratory behaviour, which is strongly connected to foraging behaviour. It can thus be assumed that pigs will ingest a certain material quantity possibly posing a risk to animal health and food safety as previous studies identified contaminants in enrichment and bedding materials. However, risk assessment requires knowledge about the effective amount of ingested material. Voluntary material intake of pigs with free access to peat and disinfectant powder was estimated by measuring the tissue levels of toxic metals originating from the respective materials in 28 pigs (seven groups, n = 4) via inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and comparing the results to tissue levels of pigs fed with known amounts of metals. Additionally, as markers of consumption, n-alkanes and acid insoluble ash naturally occurring in the materials and titanium dioxide, added as an external marker to disinfectant powder, were analysed in pigs’ faeces. Tissue levels of toxic metals as well as marker analyses in pigs’ faeces could prove material consumption. Results revealed mean voluntary intake levels of peat and disinfectant powder by pigs up to 7% and 2% of the daily ration. Hence, a transfer of contained toxic metals into the food chain might occur. Although current maximum levels for toxic elements in animal tissues were not exceeded due to dietary inclusion of peat or disinfectant powder, dietary exposure through food of animal origin should be reduced to a possible minimum. This applies specifically for elements, where no health-based guidance values for humans could have been derived (e.g. arsenic). Thus, labelling guidelines for enrichment and bedding materials can be a perspective to limit the entry of toxic metals and trace elements into the environment

Fermentation characteristics and In Vitro digestibility of fibers and fiber-rich byproducts used for the feeding of pigs

Dietary fibers may have positive impact on health and wellbeing of pigs. The study examined physicochemical properties of two lignocelluloses (including and excluding bark), powdered cellulose, Aspergillus niger mycelium, lucerne chaff, soybean shells, wheat bran, and sugar beet pulp in relation to fermentability and digestibility using in vitro batch-culture incubation. Maize starch and a purified cellulose were used as standardized substrates for classification of the test substrates. The substrates covered a wide range regarding their physicochemical properties. Swelling capacity (SC) was 9–411%, water binding capacity (WBC) was 4.4–14.3 g/g dry matter (DM), and water holding capacity (WHC) was 4.1–10.6 g/g DM. Gas production and other fermentation parameters—namely post-incubation pH, CH4, NH3, and short chain fatty acids (SCFA) concentrations—revealed a significant fermentation of sugar beet pulp, soybean shells, lucerne chaff, wheat bran, A. niger mycelium, and powdered cellulose, whereas the lignocelluloses were not fermented. Significant correlations were found between the physicochemical properties and the fermentation parameters (p < 0.05). Enzymatic pre-digestion mostly reduced gas, NH3, and SCFA production. In vitro digestibility of DM (IVDMD) and organic matter (IVOMD) was mostly negligible after enzymatic pre-digestion. Fermentation alone led to only 0.10–0.15 IVDMD and 0.14–0.15 IVOMD in lignocelluloses and powdered cellulose, respectively, but 0.44–0.37 IVDMD and 0.46–0.38 IVOMD in the remainder of substrates (p < 0.05). In vitro digestibility was again correlated with the physicochemical properties of the substrates and the fermentation parameters (p < 0.05). The fiber preparations and fiber-rich byproducts were fermented to a relevant extent. In contrast, lignocelluloses were not fermented and can be used rather as bulk material.Publikationsfonds ML

In vitro ruminal degradability of wheat straw cultivated with white-rot fungi adapted to mushroom farming conditions

Biological treatment of cereal straw for ruminant nutrition purposes might present an environmentally friendly option of valorizing a widely available by-product of grain production for farming systems with low external input. Several strains of white-rot fungi have been selected in the past under mostly controlled laboratory conditions for their capacity of lignin degradation. The study adapted to conditions on farm for upscaling purposes. The development of the in vitro straw digestibility with two different moistening pre-treatments and inoculated with three different fungi species, namely Pleurotus ostreatus, Ceriporiopsis subvermispora and Volvariella volvacea, was determined up to 42 days of fermentation with five sampling times. The effect of physical straw pre-treatments on nutritional parameters was evaluated. The neutral detergent fiber digestibility (NDFD30h), enzymatically soluble organic substance (ELOS) and the gas production (Hohenheim Feed value Test, HFT) as indicators for in vitro ruminal degradability decreased over time independent of the fungus: HFT, ELOS and NDFD30h by up to 50, 35 and 30% of the original straw. Remoistening and autoclaving the straw increased the gas production significantly by 2.6 mL/200 g dry matter (DM), and ELOS and NDFD30h by 45 and 51 g/kg DM compared to the original straw (34.9 mL/200 mg DM, 342 g/kg DM, 313 g/kg NDF)

A new protein evaluation system for horse feed from literature data

Few data on apparent pre-caecal digestibility (APCD) of crude protein (CP) and particularly amino acids (AA) are available from studies with horses. Protein bound in cell walls (i.e. neutral detergent insoluble CP (NDICP)) is unlikely to be decomposed by digestive enzymes in the small intestine. In contrast the corresponding analytical fraction of neutral detergent soluble CP (NDSCP) (NDSCP = CP-NDICP) is likely to be available for auto-enzymatic digestion. A literature analysis on the relationship between NDICP/NDSCP and pre-caecal indigestible/digestible CP was carried out. There was a strong positive relationship between NDICP and pre-caecal indigestible CP, which suggests that NDICP can be used to estimate the part of protein that is not available for digestion in the small intestine. There was also a correlation between NDSCP and pre-caecal digestible protein. The slope of the linear regression line between NDICP and pre-caecal digestible CP was 0.9, suggesting an APCD of NDSCP of 90 %. Thus pre-caecal digestible CP may be predicted by multiplying NDSCP by 0.9. Because the literature identifies a similar AA profile in NDICP and NDSCP within a given feed the presented concept may preliminarily be transferred to AA. The proposed system can at any time be adapted to the scientific progress without altering its structure. Such adaptations would be necessary particularly when new knowledge exist on the distribution of AA onto NDICP/NDSCP, the APCD of individual AA from NDSCP, and the impact of feed processing and chewing on particle sizes and protein digestibility

A new protein evaluation system for horse feed from literature data

Few data on apparent pre-caecal digestibility (APCD) of crude protein (CP) and particularly amino acids (AA) are available from studies with horses. Protein bound in cell walls (i.e. neutral detergent insoluble CP (NDICP)) is unlikely to be decomposed by digestive enzymes in the small intestine. In contrast the corresponding analytical fraction of neutral detergent soluble CP (NDSCP) (NDSCP = CP-NDICP) is likely to be available for auto-enzymatic digestion. A literature analysis on the relationship between NDICP/NDSCP and pre-caecal indigestible/digestible CP was carried out. There was a strong positive relationship between NDICP and pre-caecal indigestible CP, which suggests that NDICP can be used to estimate the part of protein that is not available for digestion in the small intestine. There was also a correlation between NDSCP and pre-caecal digestible protein. The slope of the linear regression line between NDICP and pre-caecal digestible CP was 0.9, suggesting an APCD of NDSCP of 90 %. Thus pre-caecal digestible CP may be predicted by multiplying NDSCP by 0.9. Because the literature identifies a similar AA profile in NDICP and NDSCP within a given feed the presented concept may preliminarily be transferred to AA. The proposed system can at any time be adapted to the scientific progress without altering its structure. Such adaptations would be necessary particularly when new knowledge exist on the distribution of AA onto NDICP/NDSCP, the APCD of individual AA from NDSCP, and the impact of feed processing and chewing on particle sizes and protein digestibility

Growth and influence of white-rot fungi on the chemical composition of wheat straw inoculated under varying pre-conditions

Solid-state fermentation with white-rot fungi is an interesting alternative to chemical straw treatment for ruminant nutrition. However, for practical implementation on farms, feasible handling and its effect on nutritional characteristics have to be tested beforehand. Chopped wheat straw was either soaked and drained or just remoistened to about 24% dry matter without subsequent sterilization. Moist straw was inoculated with Pleurotus ostreatus, Ceriporiopsis subvermispora, or Volvariella volvacea. Fermentation lasted up to 42 d with weekly or shorter sampling intervals. Fiber fractions, minerals and elements, and non-starch polysaccharides were analyzed, and microflora was plate counted. Lactic acid bacteria of selected samples were identified by MALDI-TOF. All inoculated fungi grew well under the selected conditions expressed by the visible mycelium and specific smell. P. ostreatus developed fruiting bodies in the given time. Initial numbers of lactic acid bacteria were >8.0 log cfu/g. In the beginning, Weissella confusa/cibaria dominated. However, neither decrease in lignin nor cellulose concentration was observed during the period in either of the treatments, thus seeming to be inappropriate for ruminant nutrition purposes. Some elements and minerals peaked, especially towards the second and third week (Na, Cl, Mg, Fe, and Mn). Growth conditions for mushrooms were optimized by remoistening the straw with a defined amount of water

Degradation of monosaccharides, disaccharides, and fructans in the stomach of horses adapted to a prebiotic dose of fructooligosaccharides and inulin

For a period of 20 days, 12 horses either received a prebiotic supplementation with fructooligosaccharides and inulin via Jerusalem artichoke meal (JAM) or corncob meal without grains (CMG) as placebo. The horses were euthanized 1 hour postprandial, gastric digesta was sampled from pars nonglandularis (PNG) and pars glandularis (PG), and concentrations of starch, mono- and disaccharides, fructans, d- and l-lactic acid, and short chain fatty acids were analyzed. Concentrations of starch and simple sugars were widely the same in JAM supplemented and not supplemented meals. However, fructans were less than half as much without supplementation as with supplementation of JAM. Glucose, fructose, sucrose, and fructans disappeared to a larger extent with prebiotic supplementation than without (106.6% vs. 86.7% glucose, 73.1% vs. 66.8% fructose, 91.5% vs. 14.7% sucrose, and 68.3% vs. 35.4% fructans remained in PNG; 81.9% vs. 38.3% glucose, 52.2% vs. 53.4% fructose, 47.1% vs. 0% sucrose, and 48.5% vs. 31.7% fructans remained in PG with CMG vs. JAM feeding). Disappearance of simple sugars and fructans was primarily associated with appearance of n-butyric acid (r = -0.21 – r = -0.33).Publikationsfonds ML