Characterization and improvement of the nutritional value of ethanol by-products for swine

The nutritional value of distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS) has not been assessed in swine. The nutritional value of corn and wheat DDGS, and possibilities to improve the nutritional value of wheat DDGS were for swine were investigated in two studies. In study 1, two experiments were conducted to determine digestibility and digestible contents of energy, amino acids (AA) and P in corn and wheat DDGS and wheat grain, together with N and P excretion and growth performance in grower-finisher pigs. In experiment 1, 12 barrows (64.6 ± 6.4 kg) were fitted with ileal T-cannulae and had restricted access (2.6 x maintenance) to a wheat control diet or one of three diets with 40% corn, wheat+corn (4:1) or wheat DDGS. For energy, apparent total tract digestibility was highest for wheat (85%; P 0.10). Total tract digestible energy (DE) was highest for corn DDGS (4292 kcal kg-1 DM; P 0.10). The apparent ileal digestible lysine content was highest for corn DDGS (0.51% DM; P 0.10). Total N excretion was highest for wheat+corn and wheat DDGS (55 and 58 g d-1; P 0.10). In summary, the nutritional value of wheat DDGS for swine is higher than wheat and lower than corn DDGS and feeding DDGS reduced growth performance, partly via a reduced ADFI, indicating that anti-nutritional factors in DDGS require further investigation. In study 2, the effect of xylanase supplementation of wheat DDGS on nutrient digestibility and nutrient excretion was evaluated in grower-finisher pigs. Wheat-based diets with or without 40% wheat DDGS were tested with or without supplementary xylanase (4,000 U kg-1 feed) as a 2 x 2 factorial arrangement in a repeated Latin square design using eight barrows (29.4 ± 2.0 kg) fitted with ileal T-cannulae. Following a 6-day acclimation, faeces and urine were collected for 3 d, and ileal digesta for 2 d. The apparent ileal energy digestibility and DE content were not affected either by ingredient or xylanase (P > 0.05). The total tract energy digestibility and DE content were affected by ingredient (P > 0.05), but not by xylanase (P > 0.05). The total-tract energy digestibility was higher for wheat, but DE content was higher for wheat DDGS. The AID of arginine, isoleucine, leucine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan and total AA were higher (P 0.05), and SID of phenylalanine was higher (P 0.10) for wheat DDGS compared to wheat. Supplementary xylanase improved AID and SID of most of the indispensable AA in wheat (P 0.05). The apparent and standardized ileal AA contents were affected by ingredients (P 0.05). Digestible AA contents were higher for wheat DDGS than for wheat. The digestibility and digestible content of P were affected by ingredient and xylanse (P 0.05). The DM excretion on daily basis and as a percentage of intake were affected by ingredient (P 0.05). Ingredients affected all N and P variables (P 0.05). None of N variables (P > 0.05), but P intake and, retention on daily basis and as a percentage of intake were affected by xylanase (P < 0.05). The DM excretion and N and P intake, excretion and daily retention were higher for wheat DDGS compared to wheat. Lack of beneficial response to supplementary xylanase might be due to inappropriate enzyme level or insufficient substrate level of wheat DDGS. In addition, unidentified factors associated with fermentation and drying processes might constrain the nutritional value of wheat DDGS. Further studies are required to determine the proper xylanase inclusion level and/or to identify the factors associated with reduced nutrient digestibility of wheat DDGS

THE ROLE OF PROTEIN AND AMINO ACID NUTRITION IN CONTROLLING CLOSTRIDIUM PERFRINGENS IN THE GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT OF BROILER CHICKENS

A series of experiments were conducted to examine the effect of dietary protein and amino acids (AA) on intestinal Clostridium (C.) perfringens proliferation and necrotic enteritis (NE) in broiler chickens. The effects of dietary protein level and protein digestibility on the growth performance and carcass characteristics of broilers were evaluated first. Low protein (LoPro) diets supported growth performance equal to high protein (HiPro) diets when highly digestible protein supplements were incorporated. Birds fed HiPro yielded more breast meat than those fed LoPro while birds fed diets with highly digestible (HiDig) protein supplements accumulated more abdominal fat than those fed diets containing low digestible (LoDig) protein ingredients. The next experiment focused on the development of a feasible experimental model to induce NE experimentally in broilers to investigate potential dietary approaches. Different modes of challenge (oral gavage, in-feed and in-water) with different doses of C. perfringens inoculums (2 or 4 ml) were tested using microbiological, pathological and hematological parameters. The findings suggested the possibility to applly any of the evaluated treatments to induce the disease in broilers raised on litter. The next experiment was conducted to examine the effects of dietary protein level and digestibility on the growth performance and intestinal ecosystem of C. perfringens challenged and unchallenged broilers. The results of this experiment again revealed the ability of LoPro diets to maintain the growth performance of broilers as with HiPro diets, when HiDig protein supplements were included. The findings further demonstrated significant reduction in the intestinal C. perfringens numbers and severity of intestinal lesions of infected broilers when LoPro diets and HiDig protein supplements were fed. The last experiment was performed to assess the methionine requirement for optimum growth in broiler chickens fed diets supplemented with either DL-methionine (DLM) or 2-hydroxy-4-methylthiobutanoic acid (HMB) under C. perfringens infected and uninfected situations. None of the methionine sources affected the growth of C. perfringens in the broiler GIT, however, infected birds needed more dietary methionine to achieve maximum growth when DLM, but not HMB, was included in the diet. Based on the overall findings it can be concluded that the dietary approaches tested in this project may support our efforts in the development of nutritional strategies to minimize the impact of C. perfringens on broiler production in an antibiotic free livestock industry

Phosphorus utilization and characterization of ileal digesta and excreta from broiler chickens fed diets varying in cereal grain, phosphorus level, and phytase addition

Both intrinsic and exogenous phytase in poultry feeds can alter phytate utilization and the solubility of P excreted. This experiment determined the effects of feeding diets varying in cereal grain, P concentration and phytase addition on phytate and P utilization and P characterization of ileal digesta and excreta. Twelve treatments, consisting of diets based on corn, wheat, barley, or high fat-low lignin oat and 3 P treatments (low P with 0.30% nonphytate P; low P + 1,000 phytase units of phytase; high P with 0.45% nonphytate P), were fed to 300 broilers using a factorial design. Fresh excreta were collected at 20 and 21 d and ileal digesta was collected at 21 d. Ileal digesta and excreta were analyzed for total P, phytate P and Ca, with P composition determined by solution 31P nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Excreta samples were also analyzed for water soluble P (WSP). Apparent ileal digestibility coefficients for phytate P and total P ranged from 0.03 to 0.42 and 0.56 to 0.71, respectively. Diets supplemented with phytase had greater phytate P hydrolysis than unsupplemented diets. Apparent total tract digestibility coefficients for phytate P and total P ranged from 0.10 to 0.73 and 0.43 to 0.61, respectively. Across cereal grains, there was almost a 3-fold increase in total tract phytate P hydrolysis with phytase supplementation. The P composition of ileal digesta was predominantly phytate P (70 to 88% of total P), whereas excreta phytate P ranged from 26 to 76% of total P. Excreta WSP ranged from 3.2 to 7.5 g kg?1 and was least for the barley diets. There was a 25% reduction in excreta WSP from the high P to the low P + phytase diets and a 37% reduction from the high P to the low P diets. As cereal grain had little influence on phytate digestibility, it is unlikely that intrinsic phytase in grain has much influence on phytate utilization by poultry. Both total P and WSP in excreta were reduced by the low P diet and the low P + phytase diet, irrespective of cereal grain, which reduces the risk of P transfer to water bodies when excreta are applied to land as fertilizer

Effect of xylanase supplementation of diets containing wheat distiller\u27s dried grains with solubles on energy, amino acid and phosphorus digestibility and growth performance of grower-finisher pigs

Wheat-based diets with or without wheat distiller\u27s dried grains with solubles (DDGS) were tested with or without supplementary xylanase (4000 U kg-1 feed) in a 2 2 factorial arrangement. In eight ileal-cannulated barrows, xylanase improved the apparent ileal digestibility of energy and threonine in wheat (P \u3c 0.05), but not in wheat DDGS diets (P \u3e 0.10). Xylanase did not affect total tract digestibility of energy or P (P \u3e 0.10). In 72 grower-finisher pigs, xylanase did not increase growth performance of pigs fed either wheat or wheat DDGS (P \u3e 0.10). The differential response of supplementary xylanase to wheat versus wheat DDGS diets indicates that the arabinoxylans in wheat DDGS did not match the specific xylanase activity

Microbial production of D-lactic acid from dried distillers grains with solubles

D-Lactic acid production is gaining increasing attention due to the thermostable properties of its polymer, poly-D-lactic acid (PDLA). In this study, Lactobacillus coryniformis subsp. torquens, was evaluated for its ability to produce D-lactic acid using Dried Distillers Grains with Solubles (DDGS) hydrolysate as the substrate. DDGS was first subjected to alkaline pretreatment with sodium hydroxide to remove the hemicellulose component and the generated carbohydrate-rich solids were then subjected to enzymatic hydrolysis using cellulase mixture Accellerase® 1500. When comparing separate hydrolysis and fermentation (SHF) and simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) of L. coryniformis on DDGS hydrolysate, the later method demonstrated higher D-lactic acid production (27.9 g/l, 99.9% optical purity of D-lactic acid), with a higher glucose to D-lactic acid conversion yield (84.5%) compared to the former one (24.1 g/l, 99.9% optical purity of D-lactic acid). In addition, the effect of increasing the DDGS concentration in the fermentation system was investigated via a fed-batch SSF approach, where it was shown that the D-lactic acid production increased to 38.1 g/l and the conversion yield decreased to 70%. In conclusion, the SSF approach proved to be an efficient strategy for the production of D-lactic acid from DDGS as it reduced the overall processing time and yielded high D-lactic acid concentrations

Changes in the arabinoxylan fraction of wheat grain during 1 alcohol production

Laboratory produced DDGS samples were compared with commercial samples from a distillery and a biofuel plant. Changes in structure, solubility and content of arabinoxylan (AX) was determined. The distillation process results in a relative increase of AX content compared to the starting material. The heating and drying processes involved in the production of DDGS lead to an increased solubility and viscosity of water-extractable AX. Production of DDGS results in structural changes to the AX. There is a decrease in 2-and 3-linked arabinose oligosaccharides, that contributes to around a 50% reduction in arabinosylation in DDGS compared with the starting grains. The current study shows that laboratory-scale DDGS provide an accurate representation of the commercial scale and that the AX composition of DDGS is consistently uniform irrespective of starting material. The uniformity of DDGS and thin stillage makes them a good potential source of AX for production of prebiotics or other novel products

Alkaline fractionation and enzymatic saccharification of wheat dried distillers grains with solubles (DDGS)

The complete utilisation of Dried Distillers Grains with Soluble (DDGS) requires effective pretreatment strategies aiming to increase the enzymatic digestibility of cellulose and improve its conversion to fermentable sugars. To this end, the effect of different NaOH concentrations (0 – 5%, w/v) and temperature (30 – 121 oC) on the fractionation of DDGS to its main components (cellulose, hemicellulose, proteins) was evaluated. As the NaOH concentration and temperature increased, the total sugar content of the pretreated DDGS solids progressively increased to a maximum of ~88%. At 121 oC and 5% NaOH, the DDGS solid residue consisted primarily of glucose (~53%), a 5-fold increase compared to the original DDGS, reflecting the presence of cellulose, and to a lesser extent by xylose (~25%) and arabinose (~10%) reflecting the presence of hemicellulose. Approximately 83% of the initial hemicellulose and 79% of the protein contents were removed into the liquid fraction during alkaline pretreatment. The enzymatic digestibility of the pretreated DDGS solids by the Accellerase® 1500 cellulase enzyme was significantly improved, resulting in a 3.6 fold increase in glucose yield compared to untreated DDGS. Mass balance analysis demonstrated that the proposed process scheme recovers the majority of the key DDGS components (cellulose, hemicellulose, proteins) in an efficient manner with relatively low losses, and provides a viable approach for the valorisation of DDGS

Effects of interpersonal trust, team leader support, rewards, and knowledge sharing mechanisms on knowledge sharing in project teams

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of interpersonal trust, team leader support, rewards, and knowledge sharing mechanisms on voluntary knowledge sharing in software development project teams in Sri Lanka. Design/methodology/approach – Survey methodology was used and 150 software developers who were directly involved in developing and maintaining a software product from project teams responded. Regression analysis was used for data analysis. Findings – Interpersonal trust and rewards have significant positive effects on knowledge sharing. Although it was anticipated that the team leader support would be a significant predictor of knowledge sharing, the results did not provide evidence for a positive and significant relationship. “Work-group communications” and “Personal interactions” had significant positive effects on knowledge sharing. Originality/value – It is expected that the findings of this study will provide useful information to better understand the predictors of the extent of knowledge sharing at the individual level in the context of project teams. By doing so, this exploratory study will be able to establish baseline data and would be a source of general guidance in stimulating future research in this area

Effect of xylanase supplementation of diets containing wheat distiller's dried grains with solubles on energy, amino acid and phosphorus digestibility and growth performance of grower-finisher pigs

Wheat-based diets with or without wheat distiller's dried grains with solubles (DDGS) were tested with or without supplementary xylanase (4000 U kg-1 feed) in a 2 2 factorial arrangement. In eight ileal-cannulated barrows, xylanase improved the apparent ileal digestibility of energy and threonine in wheat (P P > 0.10). Xylanase did not affect total tract digestibility of energy or P (P > 0.10). In 72 grower-finisher pigs, xylanase did not increase growth performance of pigs fed either wheat or wheat DDGS (P > 0.10). The differential response of supplementary xylanase to wheat versus wheat DDGS diets indicates that the arabinoxylans in wheat DDGS did not match the specific xylanase activity.This article is published as Widyaratne, G. P., J. F. Patience, and R. T. Zijlstra. "Effect of xylanase supplementation of diets containing wheat distiller's dried grains with solubles on energy, amino acid and phosphorus digestibility and growth performance of grower-finisher pigs." Canadian journal of animal science 89, no. 1 (2009): 91-95. doi:10.4141/CJAS08103. Posted with permission.</p