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. 2021 Oct;101(13):5541-5549.
doi: 10.1002/jsfa.11205. Epub 2021 Mar 24.

A novel ammoniation treatment of barley as a strategy to optimize rumen pH, feed degradability and microbial protein synthesis in sheep

Alejandro Belanche  1 , Ignacio Martín-García  1 , Elisabeth Jiménez  1 , Nicholas N Jonsson  2 , David R Yañez-Ruiz  1
Affiliations

A novel ammoniation treatment of barley as a strategy to optimize rumen pH, feed degradability and microbial protein synthesis in sheep

Alejandro Belanche et al. J Sci Food Agric. 2021 Oct.

Abstract

Background: Meeting the energy and nitrogen (N) requirements of high-performing ruminants at the same time as avoiding digestive disturbances (i.e. rumen acidosis) is a key priority in ruminant nutrition. The present study evaluated the effect of a cereal ammoniation treatment, in which barley grains are combined with urea and enzymes that catalyze the conversion of urea to ammonia to optimize rumen function. Twelve rumen cannulated sheep were randomly divided into two groups and fed a diet containing 60% of ammoniated barley (AMM) or untreated barley supplemented with urea (CTL) to investigate the impact on rumen fermentation and feed utilization.

Results: AMM had higher total N content and effective rumen degradable N than untreated barely. AMM sheep had a consistently higher rumen pH throughout the day (6.31 versus 6.03) and tended to have a lower post-prandial ammonia peak and higher acetate molar proportion (+5.1%) than CTL sheep. The rumen environment in AMM sheep favored the colonization and utilization of agro-industrial by-products (i.e. orange pulp) by the rumen microbes leading to a higher feed degradability. AMM sheep also had higher total tract apparent N digestibility (+21.7%) and urinary excretion of purine derivatives (+34%), suggesting a higher N uptake and microbial protein synthesis than CTL sheep.

Conclusion: The inclusion of AMM in the diet of ruminants represents a valid strategy for maintaining rumen pH within a physiological range and improving N utilization by the rumen microbes, which could have positive effects on the health and productivity of animals in intensive production systems. These findings warrant further studies under conventional farm conditions. © 2021 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.

Keywords: ammoniation; barley; feed utilization; rumen fermentation; sheep; urea.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Diagram illustrating the experimental set‐up and analyses within each phase.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Effect of barley ammoniation on average feed intake. CTL, control diet; AMM, diet containing ammoniated barley. †P < 0.1. Bars indicate the SEM.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Effect of barley ammoniation on rumen pH. CTL, control diet; AMM, diet containing ammoniated barley. *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01. Bars indicate the SEM.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Effect of barely ammoniation of the basal diet on in sacco DM degradability and microbial colonization of orange pulp (A, C and E) and tomato‐waste silage (B, D and F). CTL, control diet; AMM, diet containing ammoniated barley. †P < 0.1, *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01. Bars indicate the SEM.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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