Effect of dried leaves of Leucaena leucocephala on rumen fermentation, rumen microbial population, and enteric methane production in crossbred heifers

The effects of dietary inclusion of dried Leucaena leucocephala leaves (DLL) on nutrient digestibility, fermentation parameters, microbial rumen population, and production of enteric methane (CH4) in crossbred heifers were evaluated. Four heifers were used in a 4 × 4 Latin square design consisting of four periods and four levels of inclusion of DLL: 0%, 12%, 24%, and 36% of dry matter (DM) intake. Results showed that DM intake (DMI), organic matter intake, and gross energy intake (GEI) were similar (p > 0.05) among treatments. Apparent digestibility of organic matter, neutral detergent fiber, and energy decreased with increasing levels of DLL in the ration (p 0.05) rumen pH and total volatile fatty acids. Rumen microbial community was not affected (p > 0.05) by treatment. There was a linear reduction (p < 0.05) in CH4 emissions as the levels of DLL in the ration were increased. Results of this study suggest that an inclusion of 12% DM of ration as DLL enhances digestible CP and reduces daily production of enteric CH4 without adversely affecting DMI, rumen microbial population, and fermentation parameters

Avances de investigación en producción animal en Iberoamérica

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Efecto de la edad de corte y la época del año sobre el rendimiento y calidad de Brachiaria brizantha (A. Rich.) Staff en Yucatán, México

The present study was aimed to evaluate the effect of eight cutting intervals (i.e. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 weeks) and threeseasons (i.e. dry, rainy and late-rainy seasons) on Brachiaria brizantha growth rate, forage yield and chemical composition. Treatments were arranged as a split plots within a completely randomized design on an eight-year old B. brizanthapasture. It was found that, forage yield, growth rate and leaf proportion were affected (P&lt;0.05) by season, cutting intervaland their interaction. The greater yield and the highest growth rate, 3.78 t DM ha-1 and 121.6 kg DM ha-1 day-1, wereregistered in the rainy season at the eight-weeks cutting interval. The lowest forage yield and growth rate, 0.02 t DM ha-1 and 2.28 kg DM ha-1 day-1, were recorded at one-week cutting interval in the late-rainy season. The extreme values ofleaf percentage, 81, 77 and 90, and 63, 91 and 76, were found at one-week and eight-week cutting intervals for the dry,rainy and late-rainy seasons, respectively. In the rainy season, crude protein (CP) was reduced 0.96% per week startingfrom the five-week cutting interval. However, in the dry and late-rainy seasons, CP was maintained above 7 % at allcutting intervals. Nevertheless, contents of CP were reduced and fibre increased at the longest cutting intervals, exceptthe lignin content which was not affected neither by the cutting intervals nor the season evaluated.El objetivo del presente trabajo fue evaluar la tasa de crecimiento, rendimiento, y calidad (composición química y proporción hoja y tallo) de Brachiaria brizantha (A. Rich.) Staff a ocho edades (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 y 8 semanas) y tres épocas(secas, lluvias y nortes). Se utilizó un diseño de parcelas dividas completamente al azar en pastizal de B. brizantha deaproximadamente 8 años de edad, donde la parcela principal fue la época y la sub-parcela la edad. Se encontró que, elrendimiento, la tasa de crecimiento y proporción de hoja fueron diferentes entre épocas, edad e interacción época poredad (P&lt;0.05). El mayor rendimiento y tasa de crecimiento fue de 3.78 t MS ha-1 y 121.6 kg MS ha-1 día-1 registrados enla época de lluvias a 8 semanas, mientras que, el menor rendimiento y tasa de crecimiento fue: 0.02 t MS ha-1 y 2.28 kgMS ha-1 día-1, en la época de nortes a una semana. La proporción de hojas disminuyó de 81, 90 y 91% para la primerasemana hasta 77, 63, 76% a la octava semana para la época seca, lluvia y nortes respectivamente. Conforme avanzó laedad de B. brizantha, el contenido de PC se reduce y el contenido de fibra se incrementa en todas las épocas. Sin embargo, en las épocas de secas y de nortes, la PC se mantuvo arriba del 7 % en todas las edades de corte en comparación conla época de lluvias en la cual la PC es menor al 7% a partir de la sexta semana. Se concluye que conforme avanza la edadde B. brizantha el rendimiento de forraje se incrementa mientras que su calidad se reduce en las tres épocas evaluadas

Repetibilidade e variabilidade de medições de produção de metano e dióxido de carbono em bovinos alojados em câmaras de respiração de circuito aberto

Las pruebas de recuperación de gases son necesarias cuando se emplea la técnica de cámara de respiración para medir los gases de efecto invernadero exhalados por animales domésticos. Se obtuvo un conjunto de datos de 98 mediciones individuales de producción de metano y dióxidos de carbono de ganado alojado en dos cámaras de respiración para evaluar la recolección y repetibilidad de las mediciones realizadas. Se realizó un análisis de varianza para evaluar si existían diferencias estadísticamente significativas entre cámaras y entre animales. Los resultados mostraron las ocurrencias de variaciones en la produccion de metano entre las camaras.Estas variaciones pueden deberse muy probablemente a la fuga de aire de las cámaras oa las incertidumbres en los conductos de muestra de aire y las mediciones de flujo.Se requieren experimentos de recuperación de gases cuando la técnica de cámaras de respiración es empleada para la medición de gases de efecto invernadero exhalados por los animales domésticos. Un juego de 98 mediciones de metano y dióxidos de carbono producidos por bovinos alojados en dos cámaras de respiración fueron para estimar la escasez y repetibilidad de las mediciones realizadas. Se realizó un análisis de varianza de los datos para evaluar si existían diferencias estadísticamente significativas entre las cámaras y entre los animales. Los resultados mostraron las ocurrencias de variaciones en la medicion de metano entre las camaras.Estas variaciones pueden deberse probablemente a fugas de aire de las cámaras oa la incertidumbre en el ducto de prueba de aire o en la medición del flujo de aire.Experimentos de recuperação de gases são necessários quando a técnica da câmara de respiração é used to mid gases of efeito estufa exalados by animais domestics. Um conjunto de 98 medições de metano y dióxido de carbono producido por bovinos alojados em duas câmaras de respiração foi used to estimar a consumere e repetibilidad das medições used. Uma análise de variância dos dados foi realizado para avaliar se havia diferenças estatisticamente significativas entre as câmaras e entre os animais. Os resultados muestran una ocorrência de variações na medição de metano entre as câmaras. Essas variações são provavelmente devido a vazamentos de ar das câmaras ou incerteza no duto de amostragem de ar ou na medição do fluxo de ar

Ambition meets reality:Achieving GHG emission reduction targets in the livestock sector of Latin America

Livestock production is a very relevant source of income and agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Costa Rica, Uruguay, Mexico, and Peru. Several management and technological options with enteric methane mitigation potential have been evaluated and their scaling is anticipated to contribute toward achieving GHG emission reduction targets in the framework of the Paris Agreement. Yet, widespread adoption of promising mitigation options remains limited, raising questions as to whether envisaged emission reduction targets are achievable. Using findings from local studies, we explore the mitigation potentials of technologies and management practices currently proposed to mitigate enteric methane emissions from cattle production systems in the higher emitting countries of Latin America. We then discuss barriers for adopting innovations that significantly reduce cattle-based enteric methane emissions and the major shifts in policy and practice that are needed to raise national ambitions in the high emitting countries. Using the latest science and current thinking, we provide our perspective on an inclusive approach and re-imagine how the academic, research, business and public policy sectors can support and incentivize the changes needed to raise the level of ambition and achieve sustainable development goals (SDG), considering actions from the farm to the national scale

Effects of long-term diet supplementation with Gliricidia sepium foliage mixed with Enterolobium cyclocarpum pods on enteric methane, apparent digestibility, and rumen microbial population in crossbred heifers

In the last decades, strategies have been evaluated to reduce rumen methane (CH4) production by supplementing tropical forages rich in secondary compounds; however, most of these beneficial effects need to be validated in terms of their persistence over time. The aim of this study was to assess CH4 emissions over time in heifers fed with and without Gliricidia sepium foliage (G) mixed with ground pods of Enterolobium cyclocarpum(E). Two groups of four crossbred (Bos taurus x Bos indicus) heifers (284 ±17 kg initial weight) were fed with two diets (0 and 15% of a mixture of the pods and foliage [E+G:0 and E+G:15, respectively] over 80 days, plus two weeks before the experiment, in which every animal was fed a legume and pod-free diet. Every 14 days, CH4 production, apparent digestibility, volatile fatty acids (VFA), and microbial population were quantified for each animal. The experiment was conducted with a repeated measurements design over time. Diets fed differed in terms of their crude protein (CP), condensed tannins (CT) and saponins content supplied by E. cyclocarpum and G. sepium. For most of the experiment, dry matter intake (DMI) and digestible dry-matter intake (DDMI) were 6.3 kg DMI/d and 512 g DDMI/kg, respectively for both diets (Diet: P>0.05). Apparent digestible crude protein (DCP) was reduced by 21 g DCP/kg DM when the diet was supplemented with E+G:15 (P=0.040). Molar proportions of VFA’s in the rumen did not differ between diets or in time (P>0.05). Daily methane production, expressed in relation to DMI was 23.95 vs 23.32 g CH4/kg DMI for the diet E+G:0 and E+G:15 respectively (Diet: P=0.016; Time: P>0.05). Percent gross energy loss as CH4 (Ym) with grassonly diets was above 8.1%, whereas when feeding heifers with the alternate supplementation, Ym values of 7.59% (P=0.016) were observed. The relative abundance of total bacterial, protozoa, and methanogenic archaeal replicates was not affected by time nor by the incorporation of legume and pods into the diet (P>0.05). Results suggest that addition of G. sepium mixed with E. cyclocarpum pods can reduce CH4 production in heifers and this response remains over time, without effect on microbial population and VFA concentration and a slight reduction in crude protein digestibility

Degradación in situ del pastizal Chilliwar Festuca dolichophylla una alternativa para alimentación animal

The objective was to evaluate the kinetics of degradation in the first compartment (C1) of llamas of the dry matter(DM) of forage F. dolichophylla harvested at 3, 6, 9, 12 and 15 weeks of growth during two seasons (rainy and dry ).The degradation kinetics of crude protein (PC), neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF) wereevaluated only in the rainy season. In situ degradation was described by the equation of Ørskov et al., (1980) D = a +b (1-exp-ct). A completely randomized block design with a 2 x 5 factorial arrangement was used for the MS. The&nbsp;rate (c) 3.24% h-1, intercept of the curve (a) 22.22%, and the degradation potential of MS (a + b) 91.32%, were notaffected (P&gt; 0.05) by the time, age and interaction. However, the effective DM degradation (estimated with a flowrate of k = 2% h-1) was affected (P &lt;0.05) by time and age. The effective degradation of DM decreased 13.9 and10.7% from 3 to 15 weeks of growth for the rainy and dry seasons, respectively. The degradation rates of PC, 6.7%h-1, NDF, 3.9% h-1 and the FDA, 3.6% h-1, were not affected (P&gt; 0.05) by the age of growth. However, the potentialand effective degradation (k = 2% h-1) was influenced by the age of growth, ranging from 97.7 to 90.1%, 86.0 to80.8%, and from 72.4 to 71.9% from 3 to 15 weeks of increase. The effective degradation of PC, NDF and ADF wasaffected (P &lt;0.05) by the age of growth, decreasing from 88.6 to 63%, 63.5 to 57.1%, and from 51.7 to 40.3% from3 to 15 weeks of growth. It is concluded that the accelerated degradation of the protein at early hours, and lowdegradation of cell walls causes an imbalance in the availability of protein and absence of energy.El objetivo fue evaluar la cinética de degradación en el primer compartimento (C1) de llamas de la materia seca(MS) del forraje F. dolichophylla cosechado a 3, 6, 9, 12 y 15 semanas de crecimiento durante dos épocas (lluvias ysecas). La cinética de la degradación de la proteína cruda (PC), fibra detergente neutra (FDN) y la fibra detergenteácida (FDA) fue evaluada sólo en la época de lluvias. La degradación in situ fue descrita por la ecuación de Ørskovet al., (1980) D=a+b (1-exp-ct). Se usó un diseño de bloques completamente al azar con arreglo factorial 2 x 5, parala MS. La tasa (c) 3.24 % h-1, intercepto de la curva (a) 22.22 %, y el potencial de degradación de MS (a + b) 91.32%, no fueron afectados (P&gt;0.05) por la época, edad e interacción. Sin embargo, la degradación efectiva de MS(estimada con una tasa de flujo de k=2 % h-1) fue afectado (P&lt;0.05) por la época y edad. La degradación efectiva deMS disminuyó 13.9 y 10.7 % de 3 a 15 semanas de crecimiento para las épocas de lluvias y secas, respectivamente.Las tasas de degradación de PC, 6.7 % h-1, FDN, 3.9 % h-1 y la FDA, 3.6 % h-1, no fueron afectados (P&gt;0.05) por laedad de crecimiento. Sin embargo, la degradación potencial y la efectiva (k=2 % h-1) fue influida por la edad decrecimiento, variando de 97.7 a 90.1 %, 86.0 a 80.8 %, y de 72.4 a 71.9 % de 3 a 15 semanas de crecimiento. Ladegradación efectiva de la PC, FDN y FDA fue afectada (P&lt;0.05) por la edad de crecimiento, disminuyendo de 88.6a 63 %, 63.5 a 57.1 %, y de 51.7 a 40.3 % de 3 a 15 semanas de crecimiento. Se concluye que la degradación aceleradade la proteína a tempranas horas, y baja degradación de paredes celulares provoca un desbalance en la disponibilidadde proteína y ausencia de energía

Effects of tannins and saponins contained in foliage of Gliricidia sepium and pods of Enterolobium cyclocarpum on fermentation, methane emissions and rumen microbial population in crossbred heifers

Incorporation of foliage and pods of tropical legumes in ruminant rations is an alternative to mitigate enteric methane emissions. The objective of this research was to evaluate the effect of adding increasing levels of ground pods of Enterolobium cyclocarpum (Jacq.) Griseb. mixed with foliage of Gliricidia sepium (Jacq.) Steud. on emissions of ruminal methane (CH4), volatile fatty acid proportions, rumen pH and microbial population in cattle. Four heifers (218 ± 18 kg LW) were fed (13 days) 0, 15, 30, and 45% of pods of E. cyclocarpum mixed with foliage of G. sepium, which were supplemented to a basal ration of Brachiaria brizantha (Hochst. ex A. Rich.) Stapf. Data were analyzed as a 4 × 4 Latin square. After three days of CH4 measurements in open-circuit respiration chambers, rumen fluid was collected to determine volatile fatty acid (VFA) molar proportions and quantify the microbial population. Samples of ration ingredients, refusals and feces were collected to evaluate nutrient composition. Foliage and pods of legumes provided crude protein (CP), condensed tannins (CT) and saponins, while grass was characterized by higher concentrations of neutral detergent fiber (NDF). Dry matter intake (DMI) was 5.35 kg/day on average (P = 0.272). Apparent fiber digestibility was reduced (81 g/kg) and digestible CP intake (13 g/kg) increased when E. cyclocarpum mixed with G. sepium in rations were given (P  0.05). Substitution of 15 and 30% of pods of E. cyclocarpum mixed with foliage of G. sepium in the ration, decreases annual methane emissions per unit product, without affecting dry matter intake or rumen microbial population, on the contrary, digestible CP intake and animal productivity increased due to supply of CP, CT and saponins

Role of secondary plant metabolites on enteric methane mitigation in ruminants

The rumen microbiome plays a fundamental role in all ruminant species, it is involved in health, nutrient utilization, detoxification, and methane emissions. Methane is a greenhouse gas which is eructated in large volumes by ruminants grazing extensive grasslands in the tropical regions of the world. Enteric methane is the largest contributor to the emissions of greenhouse gases originating from animal agriculture. A large variety of plants containing secondary metabolites [essential oils (terpenoids), tannins, saponins, and flavonoids] have been evaluated as cattle feedstuffs and changes in volatile fatty acid proportions and methane synthesis in the rumen have been assessed. Alterations to the rumen microbiome may lead to changes in diversity, composition, and structure of the methanogen community. Legumes containing condensed tannins such as Leucaena leucocephala have shown a good methane mitigating effect when fed at levels of up to 30–35% of ration dry matter in cattle as a result of the effect of condensed tannins on rumen bacteria and methanogens. It has been shown that saponins disrupt themembrane of rumen protozoa, thus decreasing the numbers of both protozoa and methanogenic archaea. Trials carried out with cattle housed in respiration chambers have demonstrated the enteric methane mitigation effect in cattle and sheep of tropical legumes such as Enterolobium cyclocarpum and Samanea saman which contain saponins. Essential oils are volatile constituents of terpenoid or non-terpenoid origin which impair energy metabolism of archaea and have shown reductions of up to 26% in enteric methane emissions in ruminants. There is emerging evidence showing the potential of flavonoids as methane mitigating compounds, but more work is required in vivo to confirm preliminary findings. From the information hereby presented, it is clear that plant secondary metabolites can be a rational approach to modulate the rumen microbiome and modify its function, some species of rumen microbes improve protein and fiber degradation and reduce feed energy loss as methane in ruminants fed tropical plant species