Quantitative review of ruminal and total tract digestion of mixed diet organic matter and carbohydrates

Abstract

The mean response and main factors of variation (level of concentrate, nature of carbohydrate in the concentrate and level of intake) for organic matter, cell wall material, starch digestion and microbial synthesis in the gastrointestinal tract of ruminants were quantitatively reviewed using a data base involving 157 papers. The ruminal digestion (mean ± SE%) of organic matter, cell wall material, and starch were 45.2 ± 11.2 (n = 553), 47.7 ± 17.7 (n = 348), and 74.1 ± 16.2 (n = 140), respectively and the proportion of each component digested in the rumen in relation to total tract digestibility was 64.7 ± 12.3, 78.8 ± 18.5 and 80.5 ± 16.3, respectively. The efficiency of microbial synthesis (g of microbial protein/kg of organic matter truly fermented in the rumen) and the proportion of microbial nitrogen in the total amount of nitrogen leaving the stomachs (%) were, 23.6 ± 9.3 (n = 320) and 55.1 ± 16.5 (n = 289), respectively. The ruminal digestion of organic matter increased by 2 points for every 10 percent increase in concentrate incorporation. The ruminal digestion of cell wall material was maximal when the concentrate incorporation in the diet was 30%. When the ruminal digestion of cell wall decreased, the substitution of ruminal digestion by intestinal digestion was partial (10%). The efficiency of microbial synthesis was optimal when the level of concentrate incorporation was 40%. The nature of the carbohydrates in the concentrates had a significant effect on the efficiency of the microbial synthesis, which was higher (+6.6 g of nitrogen/kg of fermentable organic matter in the rumen) with slowly degradable starch (SS) or digestible fiber (DF) than with rapidly degradable starch (RS). Moreover, the mean depression of cellulolysis in the rumen was higher with RS (-13 points) comparatively to SS (-7 points) or DF (-5 points).