• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.504-510
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• 2003

Rumen ecology plays an important role in the fermentation process and in providing end-products for ruminants. These studies were carried out to investigate variations in rumen factors namely pH, $NH_3-N$ and microorganisms in cattle and swamp buffaloes. Furthermore, studies on diurnal patterns of rumen fermentation and the effect of rumen digesta transfer from buffalo to cattle was conducted. Based on these studies, diurnal fermentation patterns in both cattle and buffaloes were revealed. It was found that rumen NH3-N was a major limiting factor. Rumen digesta transfer from buffalo to cattle from buffalo to cattle was achievable. Monitoring rumen digesta for 14d after transfer showed an improved rumen ecology in cattle as compared to that of original cattle and buffalo. It is probable that buffalo rumen digesta could be transferred. However, further research should be undertaken in these regards in order to improve rumen ecology especially for buffalo-based rumen.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.99-102
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• 1991

To determine effect of time after feeding on distribution of digesta in the gastro-intestinal tracts of sheep given orchardgrass hay once a day, a total of fifteen ewes (mean live weight $51{\pm}12kg$) were slaughtered at 2, 8, 16 and 24 hours after feeding. Contents in the reticulo-rumen, omasum, abomasums, small intestine, cecum, and colon and rectum were totally collected and weighed. Weights of digesta in the reticulo-rumen were about 6 kg which contributed about 75% of the total in the whole tracts. Digesta on dry-matter basis totaled about 1 kg. The dry-matter concentration of digesta in the whole digestive tract was about 107 h/kg of fresh digesta. Distribution of moisture in the digestive tract changed in parallel with that of fresh digesta. There was no significant correlation observed between time after feeding and weights of digesta in the gastro-intestinal tracts. While, feed intake significantly correlated with digesta in the reticulo-rumen, cecum and whole tracts (p<0.01). Thus, time after feeding was inferred to have no influence upon the content of digesta in the digestive tract, but feed intake influenced on the content of digesta in the digestive tract at a low level of feeding.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.19 no.12
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• pp.1749-1754
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• 2006

Two slaughter experiments were conducted to determine the effects of rumen escape starch, by altering dietary starch concentration and corn particle size, on ${\alpha}$-amylase activity in the pancreas and the small intestinal digesta of lambs. In experiment 1, 18 wether lambs (28.5${\pm}$1.6 kg) were fed low, medium or high starch diets for 35 d and slaughtered. Dietary starch concentrations linearly increased rumen escape starch (p<0.05). Pancreatic ${\alpha}$-amylase activity was lower (p<0.05) in lambs fed the low starch diet. When expressed per gram of digesta, ${\alpha}$-amylase activity was lower in lambs fed the low starch diet. However, expressed as total activity, ${\alpha}$-amylase in the digesta was greater in lambs fed the medium starch diet. In experiment 2, 12 wether lambs (23.5${\pm}$0.3 kg) were fed diets with finely cracked corn, coarsely cracked corn and whole corn. These dietary treatments continued for 35 d before tissue collection. Rumen escape starch increased with increasing corn particle size (p<0.05). ${\alpha}$-amylase activity in the pancreas and the small intestinal digesta was significantly greater (p<0.05) in lambs fed the coarsely cracked corn. These data suggest that increasing rumen escape starch results in a quadratic increase in total ${\alpha}$-amylase activity in the pancreas and the small intestinal digesta. Maximum ${\alpha}$-amylase activity is reached when rumen escape starch is about 100-120 g/d in 25-30 kg lambs.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.548-549
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• 1989

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.427-428
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• 1989

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.659-665
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• 2016

The effects of three different feeding systems on beef cattle production performance, rumen fermentation, and rumen digesta particle structure were investigated by using 18 Limousin (steers) with a similar body weight ($575{\pm}10kg$) in a 80-d experiment. The animals were equally and randomly divided into three treatment groups, namely, total mixed ration group (cattle fed TMR), SI1 group (cattle fed concentrate firstly then roughage), and SI2 group (cattle fed roughage firstly then concentrate). The results showed that the average daily gain was significantly higher in cattle receiving TMR than in those receiving SI1 and SI2 (p<0.05). Consumption per kg weight gain of concentrate, silage, and combined net energy (NEmf) were significantly decreased when cattle received TMR, unlike when they received SI1 and SI2 (p<0.05), indicating that the feed efficiency of TMR was the highest. Blood urea nitrogen (BUN) was significantly decreased when cattle received TMR compared with that in cattle receiving SI1 (p<0.05), whereas there was no difference compared with that in cattle receiving SI2. Ammonia nitrogen concentration was significantly lower in cattle receiving TMR than in those receiving SI1 and SI2 (p<0.05). The rumen area of cattle that received TMR was significantly larger than that of cattle receiving SI1 (p<0.05), but there was no difference compared with that of cattle receiving SI2. Although there was no significant difference among the three feeding systems in rumen digesta particle distribution, the TMR group trended to have fewer large- and medium-sized particles and more small-sized particles than those in the SI1 and SI2 groups. In conclusion, cattle with dietary TMR showed increased weight gain and ruminal development and decreased BUN. This indicated that TMR feeding was more conducive toward improving the production performance and rumen fermentation of beef cattle.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.18 no.8
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• pp.1116-1124
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• 2005

The influence of fiber content of hay (low-fiber 47% NDF and high-fiber 62% NDF of DM) and concentrate level (high 50% and low 20% of ration DM) on chewing activity, passage rate and nutrient digestibility were tested on four restrict-fed (11.1 to 13.7 kg DM/d) Holstein cows in late lactation. Aspects of ruminal fermentation and digesta particle size distribution were also investigated on two ruminally cannulated (100 mm i.d.) cows of the same group of animals. All digestion parameters studied were more affected by the fiber content of the hay and its ratio to non structural carbohydrates than by the concentrate level. Giving a diet of high-fiber (62% NDF) hay and low concentrate level (20%) increased chewing activity but decreased solid passage rate and total digestibility of nutrients due to a limited availability of fermentable OM in the late cut fiber rich hay. A supplementation of high-fiber hay with 50% concentrate in the diet seems to improve the ruminal digestion of cell contents, whilst a depression of the ruminal fiber digestibility was not completely avoided. Giving a diet of low-fiber (47% NDF) hay and high concentrate level (50%) reduced markedly the chewing and rumination activity, affected negatively the rumen conditions and, consequently, the ruminal digestion of fiber. A reduction of the concentrate level from 50 to 20% in the diet of low-fiber hay improved the rumen conditions as reflected by an increase of the ruminal solid passage rate and of fiber digestibility and in a decrease of the concentration of large particles and of the mean particle size of the rumen digesta and of the faeces. Generally, it can be summarised that, (i) concentrate supplementation is not a strategy to overcome limitations of low quality (fiber-rich) hay, and (ii) increase of the roughage quality is an effective strategy in ruminant nutrition, especially when concentrate availability for ruminants is limited.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.31 no.8
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• pp.1183-1196
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• 2018

Objective: This study ascertained effects of roughage quality, period of day at meal termination and time lapse after feeding on digesta load in the rumen. Methods: Veld hay was untreated (poor roughage quality, PRQ), improved (improved roughage quality, IRQ) by treating with urea or semi-improved by spraying with urea (semi-improved roughage quality, SIRQ). Experiment 1a used four rumen fistulated sheep to determine in-sacco degradability. Twelve sheep ($56.3{\pm}4.59kg$) were blocked by weight and randomly allocated to IRQ (n = 6) and PRQ (n = 6) to determine solid and liquid passage rates. In experiment 1b, nine sheep ($37.6{\pm}9.34kg$) were blocked by weight and randomly allocated to IRQ (n = 4) and PRQ (n = 5) to determine digestibility. Sixteen sheep ($36.47{\pm}9.46kg$) were blocked by body weight and randomly allocated to IRQ (n = 8) and PRQ (n = 8). Two sheep were slaughtered for each sampling time in each treatment (IRQ and PRQ) at 0, 6, 12, and 24 h after feeding to determine rumen load. In experiment 2, eighteen goats ($25.4{\pm}9.08kg$) were blocked by weight and randomly allocated to IRQ (n = 6), SIRQ (n = 6), and PRQ (n = 6). Then all 18 goats were slaughtered soon after meal termination in the morning; afternoon and evening to determine the effect of period of day on rumen fill. Results: Rate of degradation and effective degradability were enhanced by improvement of roughage quality. Roughage quality had no effect on digestibility, but digestibility was higher in goats than sheep. Fractional passage rate of particles was higher for IRQ than PRQ, but similar for liquids. Digesta fractional clearance rates at 24 h after feeding were 0.018/h (IRQ) and 0.006/h (PRQ). Period of day had an influence on rumen load. Neutral detergent fibre load for goats were above 2.03 kg/100 kg body weight for all diet treatments. Conclusion: Following starvation, passage rate had negligible effects on emptying of rumen load.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.541-554
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• 2006

Present review is to introduce an omasal sampling technique in rumen proteolysis and to consider some information on the omasal sampling technique with particular emphasis on methodological aspects. Use of the omasal sampling technique provides a new opportunity for accurate estimation of rumen metabolism with overcoming limitations of previous in vivo, in vitro and/or in situ methods. The potential advantages of the present technique compared with post-ruminal sampling techniques include following points; 1) only rumen cannulated animals are required, 2) less endogenous nitrogen (N) is contaminated in omasal digesta and 3) omasal digesta are devoid of exposure to acid peptide hydrolysis occurring in the abomasum. Estimates of soluble non-ammonia N (SNAN) in omasal digesta indicate that the assumptions underlying the in situ method that rapidly degradable N fraction can be degraded at an infinite rate and only insoluble dietary N escapes the rumen may be not valid. Quatitatively higher peptide concentration rather than free amino acid and soluble protein in escapable SNAN suggests that hydrolysis of peptide to amino acid may be the rate-limiting step in rumen proteolysis.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.471-472
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• 1989