Influence of oleic acid on rumen fermentation and fatty acid formation in vitro.doc

A series of batch cultures were conducted to investigate the effects of oleic acid (OA) on <i>in vitro</i> ruminal dry matter degradability (IVDMD), gas production, methane (CH₄) and hydrogen (H₂) production, and proportion of fatty acids. Rumen fluid was collected from fistulated goats, diluted with incubation buffer, and then incubated with 500 mg <i>Leymus chinensis</i> meal supplemented with different amounts of OA (0, 20, 40, and 60 mg for the CON, OA20, OA40 and OA60 groups, respectively). Incubation was carried out anaerobically at 39℃ for 48 h, and the samples were taken at 12, 24 and 48 h and subjected to laboratory analysis

Effects of dietary xylooligosaccharide on growth performance, serum biochemical parameters, antioxidant function, and immunological function of nursery piglets

This study investigated the effects of dietary xylo-oligosaccharide (XOS) on growth performance, serum biochemical parameters, antioxidant function, and immunological function of nursery piglets. In total, three groups including 72 nursery piglets were designed and fed one of three diets: a control basal diet, basal diet supplemented with 0.2% ZnO, or basal diet supplemented with 0.04% XOS, for 28 days. Compared with the control group, the XOS group significantly increased the final body weight and average daily weight gain. No significant differences were found about these parameters between the control and ZnO groups. Compared with the control group, the ZnO group showed no changes in the serum content of total protein (TP), albumin (ALB), albumin:globulin (ALB:GLB), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), glucose, triglyceride, total cholesterol (TC), or in the serum activity of amylase and alkaline phosphatase. However, in the XOS group, serum glucose content increased and blood urea nitrogen and triglyceride content decreased significantly. Compared with the control group, dietary supplementation with XOS significantly increased the serum activity of total antioxygenic capacity, superoxide dismutase, and catalase and decreased the serum activity of malondialdehyde. At the same time, serum IgG content in XOS group was significantly higher than that in control group. From the current study, supplementation of 0.04% XOS in the diet could improve the antioxidant and immune function of piglets, promotes nitrogen deposition, and accelerates lipid and glucose metabolism, thereby improving piglet growth performanc

Effects of the Forage Type and Chop Length of Ramie Silage on the Composition of Ruminal Microbiota in Black Goats

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the forage type and chop length of ramie (Boehmeria nivea (L.) Gaud.) silage on rumen fermentation and ruminal microbiota in black goats. Sixteen Liuyang black goats (22.35 &plusmn; 2.16 kg) were fed with the roughage of corn silage or ramie silage at chop lengths of 1, 2, or 3 cm. The Chao 1 index and the observed number of microbial species differed significantly between the corn and ramie silage groups (p &lt; 0.05); however, Firmicutes (relative proportion: 34.99&ndash;56.68%), Bacteroidetes (27.41&ndash;47.73%), and Proteobacteria (1.44&ndash;3.92%) were the predominant phyla in both groups. The relative abundance of Verrucomicrobia (0.32&ndash;0.82%) was lowest for the 2 and 3 cm chop lengths (p &lt; 0.05) and was negatively correlated with rumen pH and propionic acid concentration (p &lt; 0.05), but positively correlated with the ratio of acetic acid to propionic acid (p &lt; 0.05). The ramie silage fermentation quality was highest for the 1 cm chop length, suggesting that moderate chopping produces optimal quality silage

Partially substituting alfalfa hay with hemp forage in the diet of goats improved feed efficiency, ruminal fermentation pattern and microbial profiles

The use of hemp as a forage source in livestock diets has been less studied because bioactive residues in animal tissues may pose a risk to consumers. This study investigated the effects of partial substitution of alfalfa hay (AH) with hemp forage (HF) in growing goat diets on growth performance, carcass traits, ruminal fermentation characteristics, rumen microbial communities, blood biochemistry, and antioxidant indices. Forty Xiangdong black goats with body weight (BW) 7.82 ± 0.57 kg (mean ± SD) were grouped by BW and randomly assigned into one of the four treatment diets (n = 10/treatment) in a completely randomized design. The goats were fed ad libitum total mixed rations containing 60% forage and 40% concentrate (DM basis). The diets included control (CON; 60% AH and 40% concentrate), 55% AH and 5% HF (HF5), 50% AH and 10% HF (HF10), and 40% AH and 20% HF (HF20). Increasing the substitution of HF for AH linearly decreased (P = 0.004) DM intake and improved feed conversion efficiency. However, final BW, average daily gain, carcass traits, meat quality, and most blood biochemistry indices did not differ among treatments. The ruminal NH3-N concentration (P = 0.003) and blood urine nitrogen (P = 0.050) linearly increased (P < 0.01) with increasing substitution rate of HF, whereas the total volatile fatty acids concentration quadratically changed (P = 0.007). Substitution of AH with HF had no effect on the diversity and richness of ruminal microbes, though it linearly decreased (P = 0.040) Prevotella_1 and linearly increased (P = 0.017) Rikenellaceae_RC9_gut_group. The cannabinoids and/or their metabolites were detected in both ruminal filtrates (8) and plasma (4), however, no detectable cannabinoid-related residues were observed in meat. These results indicate that the HF could be used to partially substitute AH in goat diets, whereas the effects vary between substitution rates of HF for AH. Although no cannabinoid-related residues were detected in meat, the presence of cannabinoids residues in blood warrants further study of HF feeding to confirm the cannabinoids residues are not present in the animal products

Dynamic Profiles of Fermentation Quality and Microbial Community of Kudzu (<i>Pueraria lobata</i>) Ensiled with Sucrose

The study aimed to investigate the effects of different levels of added sucrose on the fermentation quality and microbial community of kudzu (Pueraria lobata) silage. The three sucrose supplementation levels utilized were 0, 0.5, and 1.0%, and kudzu was silaged for 15, 30, and 60 days. Sucrose supplementation significantly decreased the pH levels, acid detergent fiber, ammonia nitrogen content, and relative abundance of Pantoea in the silages (p Klebsiella, Enterobacteriaceae, Lactobacillus, and Weissella, and the relative abundance of Enterobacteriaceae was lower in the 1% sucrose-supplemented group than in the control group. These results showed that sucrose addition could improve the quality of kudzu silage and increase its beneficial microbial community

Including ramie (Boehmeria nivea L. Gaud) in the diet of dairy cows: effects on production performance, milk composition, rumen fermentation, and nutrient digestion

This experiment was conducted to examine the effects of substituting mixed silage (fresh ramie: dry rice straw = 80: 20; kg: kg) composed of fresh forage ramie, also known as ‘China grass’, Boehmeria nivea L. Gaud (a nettle native to Asia) and rice straw for corn silage and alfalfa hay on the production performance, milk components, rumen fermentation parameters, and nutrient digestion in dairy cows. Thirty multiparous Chinese Holstein cows (629 ± 59.2 kg of BW, 25 ± 4.7 kg of milk yield, and 100 ± 18 DIM; mean ± SD) were randomly divided into three groups. The experimental treatments containing three diets, each consisting of differing proportions of mixed silage (0%, 10%, and 20%, designated as CON, MS1, and MS2, respectively) as a substitution for corn silage and alfalfa hay. There were no effects of mixed silage diets on dry matter intake (DMI), 3.5% fat-corrected milk (FCM) yield, milk protein percentage, milk somatic cell count, and milk urea nitrogen (MUN), but linearly increased total solids (p = .03) and milk fat percentage (p = .001) in cows fed the MS1 and MS2 diets. Feeding mixed silage diets linearly reduced milk yield (p = .01) and milk lactose percentage (p = .01), and had linearly increased rumen pH values (p = .01). There were no observable differences in other rumen fermentation parameters between the mixed silage and control diets. Mixed silage diets exhibited increased DM digestibility (linearly, p = .04; quadratically, p = .017) and linearly decreased crude protein digestibility (p = .05), but we observed no differences in the apparent total-tract digestibility of EE, NDF, and ADF between the control and mixed silage diets. In conclusion, using ramie and rice straw mixed silage proved beneficial by increasing milk fat percentage, milk solids, and DM digestibility, ramie could be used as a potential forage resource in dairy cow diets.Highlights We tested the effects of substituting alfalfa hay and corn silage with mixed silage composed of fresh forage ramie and rice straw on dairy cows Mixed silage diets had no effect on dry matter intake (DMI) Mixed silage diets reduced milk yield and milk lactose percentag

Comparisons of Ramie and Corn Stover Silages: Effects on Chewing Activity, Rumen Fermentation, Microbiota and Methane Emissions in Goats

The study aimed to investigate the nutritional value of ramie (Boehmeria nivea) silage, and its consequences for chewing activity, rumen fermentation, and enteric methane (CH4) emissions in goats, by comparing it with corn stover (CS) silage. An in vitro ruminal experiment was firstly performed to investigate the substrate degradation and fermentation of CS and ramie silage. The ramie silage diet was formulated by replacing 60% of CS silage with ramie silage (dry matter (DM) basis). Eight female Xiangdong Black goats (a local breed in Southern China, 1 to 1.2 years of age) with BW of 21.0 &plusmn; 1.05 kg were used for this experiment and were randomly assigned to either one of the two dietary treatments in a cross-over design. The ramie silage had higher crude protein (CP) and ash content and lower hemicellulose content, together with decreased (p &lt; 0.05) nutrient degradation and methane production and increased (p &lt; 0.05) acetate molar percentage and acetate to propionate ratio through in vitro ruminal fermentation. Feeding the ramie silage diet did not alter feed intake (p &gt; 0.05), decreased (p &lt; 0.05) nutrient digestibility, and increased (p &lt; 0.05) chewing activity and rumination activity, with reductions (p &lt; 0.05) in eating activity and idle activity. Although feeding the ramie silage diet caused a greater (p &lt; 0.05) molar percentage of acetate and lower molar percentage of propionate, it decreased the rumen-dissolved CH4 concentration and enteric CH4 emissions (p &lt; 0.05). Feeding the ramie silage diet did not alter (p &gt; 0.05) the population of bacteria, protozoa, and fungi; it increased the 16S rRNA gene copies of Ruminococcus flavefaciens (p &lt; 0.05). Further 16SrRNA gene amplicon analysis indicated a distinct bacterial composition between the two treatments (p &lt; 0.05). Feeding the ramie silage diet led to a lower abundance of genera Lawsonibacter, Sedimentibacter, Saccharofermentans, Sediminibacterium, and Bifidobacterium (p &lt; 0.05). Ramie can be an alternative forage resource to stimulate chewing activity and reduce CH4 emissions in ruminants

Comparisons of Ramie and Corn Stover Silages: Effects on Chewing Activity, Rumen Fermentation, Microbiota and Methane Emissions in Goats

The study aimed to investigate the nutritional value of ramie (Boehmeria nivea) silage, and its consequences for chewing activity, rumen fermentation, and enteric methane (CH4) emissions in goats, by comparing it with corn stover (CS) silage. An in vitro ruminal experiment was firstly performed to investigate the substrate degradation and fermentation of CS and ramie silage. The ramie silage diet was formulated by replacing 60% of CS silage with ramie silage (dry matter (DM) basis). Eight female Xiangdong Black goats (a local breed in Southern China, 1 to 1.2 years of age) with BW of 21.0 ± 1.05 kg were used for this experiment and were randomly assigned to either one of the two dietary treatments in a cross-over design. The ramie silage had higher crude protein (CP) and ash content and lower hemicellulose content, together with decreased (p p p > 0.05), decreased (p p p p 4 concentration and enteric CH4 emissions (p p > 0.05) the population of bacteria, protozoa, and fungi; it increased the 16S rRNA gene copies of Ruminococcus flavefaciens (p p Lawsonibacter, Sedimentibacter, Saccharofermentans, Sediminibacterium, and Bifidobacterium (p 4 emissions in ruminants

Influence of Oleic Acid on Rumen Fermentation and Fatty Acid Formation In Vitro.

A series of batch cultures were conducted to investigate the effects of oleic acid (OA) on in vitro ruminal dry matter degradability (IVDMD), gas production, methane (CH4) and hydrogen (H2) production, and proportion of fatty acids. Rumen fluid was collected from fistulated goats, diluted with incubation buffer, and then incubated with 500 mg Leymus chinensis meal supplemented with different amounts of OA (0, 20, 40, and 60 mg for the CON, OA20, OA40 and OA60 groups, respectively). Incubation was carried out anaerobically at 39°C for 48 h, and the samples were taken at 12, 24 and 48 h and subjected to laboratory analysis. Supplementation of OA decreased IVDMD, the cumulative gas production, theoretical maximum of gas production and CH4 production, but increased H2 production. However, no effect was observed on any parameters of rumen fermentation (pH, ammonia, production of acetate, propionate and butyrate and total volatile fatty acid production). The concentrations of some beneficial fatty acids, such as cis monounsaturated fatty acids and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) were higher (P < 0.05) from OA groups than those from the control group at 12 h incubation. In summary, these results suggest that the OA supplementation in diet can reduce methane production and increase the amount of some beneficial fatty acids in vitro

Effects of OA supplementation on the gas production parameters <i>in vitro</i>.

<p>Effects of OA supplementation on the gas production parameters <i>in vitro</i>.</p