Hostname: page-component-7bb8b95d7b-l4ctd Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-09-07T04:23:33.088Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Hydrolysis of the cell-wall carbohydrates of grasses by carbohydrases in relation to voluntary intake by sheep

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

D. I. H. Jones  and
R. W. Bailey
D. I. H. Jones
Affiliation:
Welsh Plant Breeding Station, Aberystwyth
R. W. Bailey
Affiliation:
Applied Biochemistry Division, D.S.I.R., Palmerston North, New Zealand
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

The relationship between the voluntary dry-matter intake of grasses and their in vitro digestibility (DOMD), chemical composition and susceptibility to enzymic hydrolysis was examined in two experiments. The grasses were artificially dried and represented a range of species and varieties cut at various growth stages.

In both experiments some 70% of the observed variation in intake could be attributed to differences in in vitro digestibility between the grasses and between the growth stages when harvested. Estimations of acid detergent fibre, pepsin solubility and cellulose generally accounted for less than 70% of the variation in intake.

The enzyme digestion techniques, on the other hand, accounted for up to 79% of the variation. The content of enzymically unhydrolysable cell wall gave the highest correlation with voluntary intake (r = −0·88 and −0·89, residual standard deviation 5·5 and 6·2, for the two experiments).

It is concluded that simplified techniques based on cellulase digestion of plant material may be advantageously applied to breeding programmes with the expectation of identifying material high in digestibility and with good intake characteristics.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 83 , Issue 1 , August 1974 , pp. 105 - 111
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1974

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Bailey, R. W. & Jones, D. I. H. (1971 a). Pasture quality and ruminant nutrition. III. Hydrolysis of ryegrass structural carbohydrates with carbohydrases in relation to rumen digestion. New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research 14, 847–57.Google Scholar
Bailey, R. W. & Jones, D. I. H. (1971 b). Studies on the hydrolysis by carbohydrases of plant cell-wall constituents in relation to pasture quality. Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production 31, 82–91.Google Scholar
Balch, C. C. & Campling, R. C. (1962). Regulation of voluntary food intake in ruminants. Nutrition Abstracts and Reviews 32, 669–86.Google ScholarPubMed
Chenost, M. (1966). Fibrousness of forages: Its determination and its relation to feeding value. Proceedings of the 10th International Grassland Congress, Helsinki, pp. 406–11.Google Scholar
Clancy, M. J. & Wilson, R. K. (1966). Development and application of a now chemical method for predicting the digestibility and intake of herbage samples. Proceedings of the 10th International Grassland Congress, Helsinki, pp. 445–53.Google Scholar
Donefer, E., Crampton, E. W. & Lloyd, L. E. (1960). Prediction of the nutritive value index of a forage from in vitro rumen fermentation data. Journal of Animal Science 19, 545–52.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Heaney, D. P., Pigden, W. J. & Pritchard, G. I. (1966). Comparative energy availability for lambs of four timothy varieties at progressive growth stages. Journal of Animal Science 25, 142–49.Google Scholar
Jarrige, R., Demarquilly, C. & Dulphy, J. P. (1973). The voluntary intake of forages. Proceedings of the 5th General Meeting European Grassland Federation, Uppsala. (In the Press.)Google Scholar
Jones, D. I. H. (1972). The chemistry of grass for animal production. Outlook on Agriculture 7, 32–8.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, D. I. H. & Bailey, R. W. (1972). The hydrolysis of cell wall polysaccharides from freeze dried and oven dried herbage by rumen and mould carbohydrases. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 23, 609–14.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jones, D. I. H. & Hayward, M. V. (1973). A cellulase digestion technique for predicting the digestibility of grasses. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 24, 1419–26.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Miles, D. G., Walters, R. J. K. & Evans, E. M. (1969). Dry matter intake and live weight gain of cattle and sheep offered different grass varieties with and without clover. Animal Production 11, 19–28.Google Scholar
Minson, D. J. (1971). The digestibility and intake by sheep of six tropical grasses. Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 12, 21–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Minson, D. J. (1972). The digestibility and voluntary intake of six varieties of Panicum. Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 11, 18–25.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Minson, D. J., Harris, C. E., Raymond, W. F. & Milford, R. (1964). The digestibility and voluntary intake of S. 22 and H. 1 ryegrass, S. 170 tall fescue, S. 48 timothy, S. 215 meadow fescue and germinal cocksfoot. Journal of the British Grassland Society 19, 298–305.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nelson, N. (1944). A photometric adaptation of the Somogyi method for the determination of glucose. Journal of Biological Chemistry 153, 375–80.Google Scholar
Osbourn, D. F. (1967). The intake of conserved forages. Occasional Symposium of the British Grassland Society. No. 3. Fodder Conservation, pp. 20–8.Google Scholar
Osbourn, D. F., Thomson, D. J. & Terry, R. A. (1966). The relationship between voluntary intake and digestibility of forage crops, using sheep. Proceedings of the 10th International Grassland Congress, Helsinki, pp. 363–66.Google Scholar
Raymond, W. F. (1969). The nutritive value of forage crops. Advances in Agronomy 21, 2–108.Google Scholar
Reid, R. L. & Jung, G. A. (1966). Factors affecting the intake and palatability of forages for sheep. Proceedings of the 9th International Grassland Congress Sāo Paulo, pp. 863–69.Google Scholar
Tilley, J. M. A. & Terry, R. A. (1963). A two-stage technique for the in vitro digestion of forage crops. Journal of the British Grassland Society 18, 104–11.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Troelsen, J. E. & Bigsby, F. W. (1964). Artificial mastication — a new approach for predicting voluntary forage consumption by ruminants. Journal of Animal Science 23, 1139–42.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ulyatt, M. J. (1970). Factors contributing to differences in the quality of short-rotation ryegrass, perennial ryegrass, and white clover. Proceedings of the 11th International Grassland Congress, Queensland, pp. 709–13.Google Scholar
Van Soest, P. J. (1966). Non-nutrive residues: A system of analysis for the replacement of crude fibre. Journal of the Association of Official Agricultural Chemists 49, 546–51.Google Scholar
Walters, R. J. K. (1971). Variation in the relationship between in vitro digestibility and voluntary dry matter intake of different grass varieties. Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge 76, 243–52.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walters, R. J. K. (1973). Variation between grass species and varieties in voluntary intake. Proceedings of the 5th General Meeting, European Grassland Federation, Uppsala. (In the Press.)Google Scholar