Effects of Limiting Amino Acids on Rumen Fermentation and Microbial Community In vitro

Three goats fitted with cannula were used to provide rumen liquor to investigate the effects of limiting amino acids on rumen fermentation and microbial community in vitro. The removal method was used in the current experiments. Treatments are total essential amino acid （TEAA）, His-removal, Lys-removal, Met-removal, and branch chain amino acid （BCAA）- removal. Results indicated that, pH-value ranged between 5.9 and 6.8, with the highest mean value for the group with BCAA-removal （6.54） in the culture. Concentration of NH3-N ranged between 10.99 to 30.51 mg 100 mL^-1, with the group of TEAA recording the highest average NH3-N concentration （17.85 mg 100 mL^-1）. Yields of microbial protein and limiting degree on microbial growth varied with treatments （P 〈 0.01）, and the lowest accrued in treatment with BCAA-removal （0.1389, 0.1772, and 0.3161 mg mL^-1 for bacteria, protozoa, and mixed microbes, respectively）, compared to the group with TEAA, microbial production of mixed microbes decreased by 44.52%. As for micro-flora, protozoa to bacteria ratio was the lowest for the group with Lys-removal （89.12%）, while the highest for the group with BCAA-removal （127.60%） （P 〈 0.01）. Furthermore, PCR-SSCP analysis revealed that, microbial profile subjected to substrates within bacteria and protozoa groups. It was therefore concluded that, dietary amino acid influenced both rumen fermentation and microbial characteristics.

Ontogenetic changes in digestive enzyme activities and the amino acid profile of starry flounder Platichthys stellatus

Ontogenetic changes in digestive enzyme activities and the amino acid(AA) profile of starry flounder,Platichthys stellatus,were investigated and limiting amino acids were estimated compared with the essential AA profile between larvae and live food to clarify starry flounder larval nutritional requirements.Larvae were collected at the egg stage and 0,2,4,7,12,17,24 days after hatching(DAH)for analysis.Larvae grew from 1.91 mm at hatching to 12.13 mm at 24 DAH.Trypsin and chymotrypsin activities changed slightly by 4 DAH and then increased significantly 4 DAH.Pepsin activity increased sharply beginning 17 DAH.Lipase activity increased significantly 4 DAH and increased progressively with larval growth.Amylase activity was also detected in newly hatched larvae and increased 7 DAH followed by a gradual decrease.High free amino acid(FAA) content was detected in starry flounder eggs(110.72mg/g dry weight).Total FAA content dropped to 43.29 mg/g in 4-DAH larvae and then decreased gradually to 13.74 mg/g in 24-DAH larvae.Most FAAs(except lysine and methionine) decreased >50%in 4-DAH larvae compared with those in eggs and then decreased to the lowest values in 24-DAH larvae.Changes in the protein amino acid(PAA) profile were much milder than those observed for FAAs.Most PAAs increased gradually during larval development,except lysine and phenylalanine.The percentages of free threonine,valine,isoleucine,and leucine decreased until the end of the trial,whereas the protein forms of these four AAs followed the opposite trend.A comparison of the essential AA composition of live food(rotifers,Artemia nauplii,and Artemia metanauplii) and larvae suggested that methionine was potentially the first limiting AA.These results may help develop starry flounder larviculture methods by solving the AA imbalance in live food.Moreover,the increased digestive enzyme activities indicate the possibility of introducing artificial compound feed.

Study on Degradation of Cellulose-rich Substrates by Bacillus licheniformis

Bacillus lincheniformis is a representative probiotic, widely used in food, medicine and livestock industries and other industries. In this experiment, a strain of Bacillus lincheniformis was isolated and identified, which was used to ferment celluloserich substrate. The effects were analyzed. The experimental results showed that Bacillus lincheniformis had the capacity to degrade cellulose(32.8% was degraded) and less capacity to degrade hemicellulose(7.9% was degraded), which could not degrade ligin. The total protein contents in the products fermented by Bacillus lincheniformis with cellulose-rich substrate riched by 11.6%, compared with the fermented products with no cellulose-rich substrate, furthermore, the contents of Met, Lys and Leu riched by 14%, 17.5% and 4.1%, respectively. These results showed that Bacillus lincheniformis had the ability to degrade cellulose and it provided experimental data for further utilization.