Search

• Soaking of cereals in lactic acid efficiently reduced phytate-phosphorus. • Drying and storage improved available phosphorus in wheat and corn. • Lactic acid treatment increased resistant starch in wheat. • Lactic acid treatment decreased resistant starch in corn. • Leakage of nutrients into soaking solution depended on cereal source. The low availability of phytate phosphorus (Phy-P) from cereals for monogastric livestock can be enhanced using feed technological processes. The present objective was to investigate the effect of soaking of grains in lactic acid (LA) on the Phy-P disappearance and chemical composition in wheat and corn grains and whether changes in the nutrient profiles occurred when cereals were dried and stored for four weeks. Wheat, corn and a 50:50 mixture of both grains were soaked in 0, 10 and 25 g/kg LA (LA0, LA10, and LA25) for 0, 6, 12, 24 and 48 h. Thereafter, samples were either directly analyzed for their nutrient content or stored for 4 weeks at 21 °C until analyses. The effect of LA on the nutrient profiles in wheat, corn and, wheat-corn mixture was more evident with increasing LA concentration and soaking time, with the greatest effect with LA25 after 48 h of incubation. Soaking the cereals in LA25 for 48 h decreased (P < 0.05) the total phosphorus content by 9% across grains and decreased the Phy-P content by 24, 30 and 25% in corn, wheat and wheat-corn mix, respectively (P < 0.05), thereby correspondingly increasing the available phosphorus content. Phytase activity in corn grain represented one-tenth of the activity in wheat. End-product inhibition was indicated by the reduced phytase activity in wheat and wheat-corn mix after 48 h of soaking (P < 0.05). Moreover, crude ash and neutral detergent fiber decreased after soaking in LA, with the greatest change observed with LA25 and 48 h of treatment in LA. Although the LA treatment did not markedly affect the total starch content, soaking in LA25 increased the resistant starch content in wheat by 51%, whereas it decreased by 52 and 19% in corn and wheat-corn mixture, respectively (P < 0.05). Drying and storing the samples for four weeks increased the content of dry matter and crude ash, whereas neutral-detergent fiber, acid-detergent fiber, and non-resistant starch were reduced in the LA-treated grains after storage (P < 0.05). Storage also enhanced the Phy-P disappearance in LA-treated wheat and wheat-corn mix, thereby further increasing the available phosphorus fraction. In conclusion, soaking of grains in LA25 for 48 h demonstrated to be an effective strategy to improve the phytate-P availability in wheat and wheat-corn mix. Beneficial changes in the hemicellulose and resistant starch fractions caused by the LA treatment may have implications for the functional abilities of the LA-treated grains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • The concentration of vitamin varied significantly among different ingredients. • There was a significant difference in vitamin content of the same ingredient among different growing regions. • Corn and that of co-products were rich in β-carotene and vitamin E and oilseed co-products were rich in choline. Abstract The concentration of vitamins was determined in 143 samples of 13 feed ingredients commonly used in pig diets. The ingredients included corn and four corn co-products (corn distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS), corn gluten meal, corn germ meal and corn gluten feed), wheat and two wheat co-products (wheat bran and wheat shorts), and five oilseed meals (soybean meal, rapeseed meal, peanut meal, sunflower seed meal and cottonseed meal). For corn and corn co-products, the content of β-carotene in corn gluten meal (11.10 mg/kg) was much greater than that in corn (1.62 mg/kg) and other corn products (2.16, 0.36 or 0.56 mg/kg, P < 0.01), whereas the content of choline was the least (80.04 mg/kg) in corn, and corn gluten feed had the greatest concentration of choline (1525.18 mg/kg). The greatest concentration of vitamin E was in corn DDGS (39.24 mg/kg). The concentration of niacin in corn was much lower than that in its co-products (3.68 vs. 23.23, 29.42, 36.46 and 52.65 mg/kg, P < 0.01). The contents of β-carotene were very low in wheat, wheat co-products and oilseed meals. The concentration of most of vitamins were greatest in wheat bran and least in wheat except that wheat shorts contained lower choline niacin (P < 0.01). For oilseed meal, the content of vitamin E was much greater (P < 0.01) in rapeseed meal (8.66 mg/kg) and cottonseed meal (10.57 mg/kg) than that in soybean meal (2.42 mg/kg), peanut meal (0.67 mg/kg) and sunflower seed meal (1.04 mg/kg). The concentration of niacin was low in cottonseed meal (9.15 mg/kg), and greatest in sunflower seed meal (183.91 mg/kg). The rapeseed meal (2276.32 mg/kg) had the greatest concentration of choline, while sunflower seed meal had the least choline (399.96 mg/kg, P < 0.01). Compared numerically, corn and its co-products were rich in β-carotene and vitamin E and oilseed co-products were rich in choline. These results indicate that the variability in concentration of vitamins among feed ingredients is very great. Therefore, careful attention must be paid to the balance of vitamins when these ingredients are used in pig diets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three experiments were conducted to study the loss of secondary starch particles from bags used for the in situ incubation of different cereal grains. Two in vitro and one in situ study were combined. Ruminally cannulated Jersey cows were used for rumen fluid collection and in situ degradation studies in randomly assigned repeated measures designs, each including three replicates per treatment. An in vitro time course study was conducted to determine whether secondary starch particle losses occur during ruminal incubation. Ground wheat was weighed and placed in bags with a pore size of 50 μm, then washed, dried, and incubated for 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 16, and 32 h in a modified RUSITEC-system. Bag residues and samples of freeze-dried fermenter fluids were enzymatically analyzed for starch content. Using the same technique used for the first in vitro experiment, but with an incubation time of only 8 h, ground wheat, barley, and corn grains were incubated in bags with pore sizes of 50, 30 (with the exception of corn), 20, and 6 μm. In the in situ experiment, ground wheat, barley, corn, and oats were rumen-incubated in bags with pore sizes of 50, 20, and 6 μm for different time periods. Then, the grains and bag residues were enzymatically analyzed to determine their starch content, and the degradation characteristics of the materials were calculated. The in vitro trials showed that incubating wheat and barley in bags with pore sizes of 50 and 30 μm leads to a substantial degree of secondary starch particle loss during incubation. These losses were not detectable when the samples were placed in bags with pore sizes of 20 and 6 μm. No secondary starch particle losses occurred in corn, regardless of pore size; thus, corn can be studied in situ even when using bags with 50 μm pore size. Due to the high washout losses the in situ method is not suitable for the measurement of starch degradation in oats using the pore sizes tested in the present study. Because of the methodological problems associated with pore sizes <50 μm, no recommendations can be provided for the evaluation of wheat and barley. Thus, caution must be taken when the in situ technique is used for ruminal grain starch degradation measurements, as there are substrate-related errors possible that must be taken into account. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Corn-, wheat- and mixed cereal Distillers’ Dried Grains with Solubles (DDGS) were investigated for compositional variability among DDGS origins, ethanol plants, and the relationship between corn and corresponding DDGS. A total of 138 DDGS samples were analyzed by use of Near Infrared Reflectance Spectroscopy for common constituents, while 63 DDGS samples along with 11 corn samples were characterized for their non-starch polysaccharide (NSP) content. The results indicated that the compositional profile of DDGS reflected the nutrient content of the parent grain but with a greater content of remaining nutrients ( e.g. protein, fat, fibre and minerals) after fermentation of starch to ethanol. Corn DDGS differentiated from wheat DDGS by a greater content of fat (P≤0.006), insoluble-NSP (P<0.001), uronic acids (P<0.001), cellulose (P=0.032), and arabinose/xylose (P<0.001) – and uronic acid/xylose-ratio (P<0.001). Wheat DDGS differentiated from corn DDGS by a greater content of ash (P=0.001), soluble-NSP (P<0.001), and Klason lignin (P<0.001). Among the three sources of DDGS, the greatest variation was observed for the content of soluble-NSPs, especially soluble arabinoxylan. Based on the compositional profiles of the DDGS, principal component analysis allowed for a visual differentiation of corn DDGS from five different ethanol plants, indicating the potential of each ethanol plant to produce DDGS with consistent compositional characteristics. Furthermore, investigation of corn and corresponding DDGS indicated that the NSP fraction is modified during the fermentation process, especially arabinoxylan, by an increase in soluble arabinoxylan proportion in DDGS. In addition, the arabinose/xylose (P<0.001) and uronic acid/xylose-ratio (P<0.001) were greater for corn, compared with corresponding DDGS, indicating modifications of the endosperm arabinoxylan during the fermentation and drying process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Deoxynivalenol (DON) is a common mycotoxin contaminating corn and wheat and conjugated forms are also present. Recent studies have suggested that current analytical methods for DON analysis in feedstuffs do not detect conjugated forms in the absence of hydrolysis. The aim of the current study, therefore, was to determine the optimal conditions in which conjugated DON in corn and wheat can be hydrolyzed by trifluoromethanesulfonic acid (TFMSA). The optimal hydrolysis procedure was determined based on reaction duration, reaction temperature and TFMSA concentration. Total DON concentrations were determined using ELISA with free DON concentrations determined by ELISA and GC–MS. The optimal hydrolysis conditions for determination of conjugated DON in corn were found to be 0.5M TFMSA incubated for 20min at 22°C. Optimal conditions for wheat samples were 0.5M TFMSA incubated for 40min at 40°C. Using these optimal hydrolysis conditions, 10 corn samples and 10 wheat samples were analyzed to determine the presence of conjugated DON. All samples contained conjugated DON with an increase of 8–70% for DON in corn following hydrolysis and an increase of 7–75% for DON in wheat. This hydrolysis procedure will aid in the accurate determination of total DON and conjugated DON in feedstuffs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Feeding low crude protein diets resulted in adequate performance in floor pens. • Reducing dietary crude protein resulted in changes in protein and energy digestion. • Changes in digestion likely attributed to increased feed-grade amino acid inclusion. Previous experimentation has indicated that wheat-based diets are a poor diet type to allow for optimal performance when dietary crude protein (CP) is reduced, while corn-based diets show promise. Potential mitigation of the negative effects associated with reduced CP wheat-based diets could include blending corn and wheat to be used as the cereal grain portion of broiler diets. Therefore, two studies were conducted in order to observe the effects of reduced dietary CP when broilers were fed diets containing a 1:1 blend of wheat and corn. For Experiment 1, 816 Cobb 500 broilers were placed in 24 floor pens to allow for the observation of live performance measurements from 1–41 days of age, and 108 Ross 308 broilers were placed into 18 battery cages for observation of protein and nutrient digestibility from 8–28 days of age in Experiment 2. In the floor pen study, High and Low diets were formulated to contain 235, 215, and 195 and 195, 175, and 155 g/kg CP in the starter, grower, and finisher diets, respectively. The High and Low diets were then blended to produce a Medium diet containing 215, 195, and 175 g/kg CP in the starter, grower, and finisher diets, respectively. Alternately, grower diets were offered to broiler chickens raised in battery cages from day 8–28 in Experiment 2. No effects of reduced CP were found on final body weight (BW), BW gain, or feed intake for any growout period in Experiment 1 but feed conversion ratio (FCR) was significantly increased for broilers fed the Low CP diet compared to broilers fed the High and Medium diets for the 1–27 and 1–41 day periods. In Experiment 2, broilers fed the Low diet achieved lower final BW, BW gain, and feed intake than those fed the High and Medium diets. Feed conversion ratio increased in a stepwise manner as CP was reduced. Nutrient digestibility assays found stepwise increases in nitrogen-corrected apparent metabolisable energy (AME N) as dietary CP level was reduced and increased nitrogen (N) digestibility for broilers fed the Medium and Low diets compared to those fed the High. These data indicated that including wheat and corn at a 1:1 ratio in reduced CP diets was able to adequately support final BW and BW gain in floor pens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Pigs fed corn had lower faecal energy and nitrogen output than those fed sorghum. • Pigs fed corn had greater faecal energy and nitrogen output than those fed wheat. • Sorghum could substitute for corn in pig diets given the similar performance. • Wheat is preferable to sorghum for pigs considering the low faecal nutrient loss. Sorghum and wheat grains have been previously identified as potential substitutes for corn in diets for pigs based on the available energy. This experiment was conducted to compare growth performance and faecal energy and nitrogen output per weight gain in growing pigs fed on corn (CSBM), sorghum (SSBM) or wheat soybean meal based diets (WSBM). Sixty crossbred pigs (23.4 ± 1.6 kg of body weight) were allotted to 3 diets with 5 replicate pens per treatment according to sex and weight in a randomized complete block design. The CSBM included 703.4 g/kg of corn during day 1–35 (phase 1) and 736 g/kg during day 36–70 (phase 2). The corn content in CSBM was partially (500 g/kg; phase 1) or completely (phase 2) replaced by sorghum in SSBM or wheat in WSBM. No differences were detected in average daily gain (ADG) or average daily feed intake (ADFI) between CSBM and SSBM treatments. Pigs fed on WSBM had lower ADFI than those fed on CSBM or SSBM (P < 0.05). The ADG of pigs fed on WSBM tended to decrease during phase 1 (P = 0.09) and 2 (P = 0.06) and decreased overall (P < 0.05). Compared with SSBM, WSBM increased feed conversion efficiency and apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of dry matter and gross energy (P < 0.05). The ATTD of crude protein in CSBM was greater than that in SSBM and lower than that in WSBM (P < 0.05). Pigs fed on CSBM had lower faecal energy and nitrogen output per weight gain than those fed on SSBM and greater than those fed on WSBM (P < 0.05). Serum urea nitrogen concentration in WSBM was greater than that in CSBM and SSBM (P < 0.05). Collectively, sorghum could be used as an alternative energy source for corn in diets fed to growing pigs without negative effects on growth performance. However, given the feed conversion efficiency and manure emissions, wheat may be a superior energy ingredient in diets for growing pigs with the low nutrient loss and output in manure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Feeding wheat with nitrate, fat or 3-nitrooxypropanol (3-NOP) decreased methane production. • There was no interaction between grain and nitrate, fat or 3-NOP on methane production. • Feeding wheat with nitrate, fat or 3-NOP may be effective methane mitigation strategies. Enteric methane emitted by ruminants is a nutritional inefficiency that contributes to global warming. Feeding substantial quantities of wheat grain to dairy cows has been reported to decrease enteric methane emissions compared with other feeds. Feeding methane mitigating agents such as nitrate, fat and 3-nitrooxypropanol (3-NOP) to ruminants have also been reported to decrease enteric methane emissions. This research involved three in vitro experiments that examined the combined effect of wheat grain with nitrate, fat or 3-NOP on in vitro methane mitigation. In each of the experiments, wheat grain or corn grain were incubated in combination with one of the three methane mitigating agents (nitrate, fat or 3-NOP). The fermentation of wheat grain produced 22% less methane than the fermentation of corn grain. All three methane mitigating agents decreased in vitro methane production and methane production expressed per gram of dry matter degraded. The addition of nitrate, fat and 3-NOP decreased in vitro methane production by 21, 19 and 44% respectively. The methane mitigating effect of wheat grain in combination with nitrate, fat or 3-NOP was greater than the individual effects of wheat grain, nitrate, fat or 3-NOP. The feeding of the combination of wheat grain with nitrate, fat or 3-NOP to ruminants may be effective strategies for decreasing their enteric methane emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]