Nonruminant Nutrition: Enzyme Supplementation.

The article presents abstracts of various papers related to animal nutrition that were presented during the symposium held on July 28, 2005 in Cincinnati, Ohio, which was organized by the American Dairy Science Association, the American Society of Animal Science, and the Canadian Society of Animal Science. One of the papers discussed is "Fate of Supplemental Escherichia coil Phytase in the Digestive Tract of Young Pigs," by A.R. Pagano, K.R. Roneker, and X.G. Lei. The objective of this study was to determine the functional site of a supplemental E. coli phytase and its impact on phosphorus contents of digesta in different segments of the gastrointestinal tract of pigs. A total of 18 weanling pigs were allotted to three groups and were fed a low-P corn-soy basal diet (BD), BD + E. coli AppA2 phytase, or BD + inorganic P for 4 wk. Another paper discussed is "The Effect of Wheat Variety and Enzyme Supplementation on Pig Performance," by M.E.E. McCann, K.J. McCracken and P.H. Simmins. Although wheat is a major component of many pig diets, it has been reported to be the most variable in terms of chemical composition and nutritive value. This variation arises from a number of factors, including variety. Wheat nutritive value can also be affected by non starch polysaccharide content, the presence of the IB/IR gene and endosperm hardness.