Lecture 12- Protein Ruminant Digestion and Metabolism Flashcards
What’s unique about ruminant protein digestion ?
Unique b/c ruminants can subsist and produce on a very low (sometimes almost zero) protein diet
– Microbial protein synthesis
What’s the biological value of ruminant protein digestion ?
Biological value= 70-90%
– AA profile resembles almost exactly what host requires
What’s the primary goal of protein digestion in the rumen?
Primary goal is to maximize microbial growth
– Microbes are a high value feed (meaning their
composition (essential amino acid profile) closely
resembles the composition of tissue and milk
* The cows small intestine then digests the microbes and this
releases an almost perfect blend of amino acids
Is there proteases in saliva of Rumen?
No
In the rumen is there any proteolytic secretions?
No rumen proteolytic secretions
What are microorganisms responsible for?
Microorganisms responsible for protein
digestion in rumen (and reticulum)
– Bacteria
– Protozoa
What are two sources of rumen nitrogen ?
-Feed
-Endogenous (recycles) N
What type of protein does rumens feed have?
– Protein nitrogen
Protein supplements (Soy BM, Cotton SM, grains,
forages, silages…
– Nonprotein nitrogen (NPN)
Usually means urea
What does endogenous (recycled) N contain?
-Saliva
-Rumen wall
Protein in the ruminant diet…what type of protein does the ruminant diet have?
**Dietary protein – contains amino acids
* Rumen Degradable Protein (RDP) – digestible “available to” by rumen microbes
* Rumen Undegradable Protein (RUP) – “escapes” rumen
digestion; enters small intestine unaltered
(Varies with diet, feed processing)
**Dietary non-protein nitrogen (NPN) – not “true”
protein…non-amino acid nitrogen; provides a source of nitrogen for microbial protein synthesis (Relatively CHEAP decreases cost of protein supplementation)
Types of Rumen Protein:
- Rumen Degradable Protein (RDP)
– Protein that gets metabolised (digested) in the
rumen - Rumen Undegradable Protein (RUP)
– “Bypasses” or “escapes” the rumen and
hopefully is digested and absorbed in the
small intestine
– Protein not digested in the rumen - If not digested in the small intestine then it enters
the large intestine and is thus unavailable to the
ruminant animal.
What type of protein is Rumen Degradable Protein?
– Protein that gets metabolised (digested) in the rumen
What type of protein is Rumen Undegradable Protein (RUP)
– “Bypasses” or “escapes” the rumen and
hopefully is digested and absorbed in the
small intestine
– Protein not digested in the rumen
* If not digested in the small intestine then it enters the large intestine and is thus unavailable to the ruminant animal.
List the two types of dietary protein:
- Rumen Degradable Protein (RDP) – digestible “available to” by rumen microbes
- Rumen Undegradable Protein (RUP) – “escapes” rumen digestion; enters small intestine unaltered
(Varies with diet, feed processing)
What is the process of protein degradation in the rumen?
Feed proteins…also known as -Undegraded feed proteins, escaped feed proteins, by pass proteins. and broken down into > peptides >amino acids
What are enzymes from protozoa and bacteria involved in when it comes to protein degradation in the rumen?
Enzymes from protozoa and bacteria
Many species of bacteria involved
Bacterial enzymes are extracellular
Both exopeptidase and endopeptidase activity
What does the protein in the rumen feed first?
**Feed the rumen microbes first (i.e. RDP)
What are the two counteractive processes in the rumen?
- Degradation of dietary protein
- Synthesis of microbial protein
What happens to some proteins in the rumen?
Some feeds proteins “escape” fermentation hopefully meet the remainder of animal’s protein requirements
(Escape protein, bypass protein, or rumen
undegradable protein) (RUP)
* Heat treatment
List factors that effect ruminal protein degradation:
*Chemical bonding
-Disulphide bonds – Reduces degradation
*Physical barriers
-Cell walls of plants (“embedded” within lignin)
-Cross linking of peptide chains – Reduces degradation
*Feed intake
-Rate of passage – Time proteins spend in the rumen
*Feed processing
-Rate of passage
-Heat damage – Complexes with carbohydrates
What is dietary proteins classified based on?
Solubility in the rumen . Into fractions
List the fractions of protein:
Fractions:
– A
NPN, instantly solubilized/degraded
– B
Potentially degradable
(Depends upon amount of time spent in rumen)
– C
Insoluble, recovered in ADF, undegradable
What does degradation depend on ?
depends upon both the nature of the protein and the length of time it remains in the rumen. As feed intake and passage rate through the rumen increase, retention time in the rumen and degradation decrease
What does rumen degradability estimate?
It estimates for the crude protein in common feed ingredients
What does deaminate mean
when you have an amino acid and an amino group, the bond between in acid and the amino group is hydrolysed (no longer attached) the bug them ferments the amino acid into VFA’s and ATP. and there is also an ammonia molecule that creates threonine
What are proteins broken down into in the rumen?
Peptides and amino acids
All the enzymes in the rumen? how are they made?
By the microbes
What does the rumen microbes digest/use/metabolize?
Dietary protein
What does rumen microbes create differences between ?
Protein quality in feed and protein actually absorbed by the host (different than in monogastric nutrition)
What does microbes break down dietary protein into?
-Amino acids
-NH3, VFA’s and CO2
What does microbes re-synthesize?
Amino acids (including all the essential amino acids from NH3 and carbon skeletons)
Is there absorption of protein or amino acids from rumen?
-No absorption (Or from cecum or large intestine)
Is urea digestible?
Urea is almost 100% digestible
Does microbial protein have a high biological value?
Yes it has a high biological value because its amino acid composition very closely matches the amino acid requirement of muscle and milk.
How much microbial protein can a dairy cow produce?
2.7kg (6lbs) of microbial protein a day.
What’s the 2 regulations of microbial protein?
1-Up regulation
2-Down regulation
What’s up regulation like?
Straw (low quality protein) gets turned into microbial protein (high quality)
Whats down regulation like?
Egg protein (very high quality), gets turned into microbial protein.
Whats microbial protein synthesis related to?
1- Available NH3 and amino acids (DIP)
2- Fermentation of CHO- Energy