Microbial protein production determined by urinary allantoin and renal urea sparing in normal and low protein fed Corriedale sheep

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to compare the amount of microbial N entering the duodenum and the efficiency of N utilisation for microbial protein synthesis in normal (NP, 17.4 g N/d) and low protein (LP, 7.5 g N/d) fed Corriedale sheep. Renal functional tests for urea handling studies, and determination of urinary allantoin as an indirect method to estimate the microbial protein production were used. Although the N intake was 57% lower in LP sheep, the microbial N production was not very different between both diets (NP: 3.99 ± 0.01 vs. LP: 3.79 ± 0.02 g/d, P < 0.05). The efficiency of the microbial protein synthesis in the rumen, expressed as grams of microbial N per kg of digestible organic matter apparently digested in the rumen, was not statistically different for both diets. The urinary elimination of urea was reduced by 84% in LP sheep, essentially due to an important decrease in both renal plasma flow (-63%) and glomerular filtration rate (-71%). These haemodynamic changes would also reduce the filtered load and the urinary elimination of allantoin, thereby leading to an underestimation of the amount of microbial protein entering in the duodenum. Since the renal urea spared by the kidneys remains in the blood, it limits the drop of the available urea for ruminal recycling consecutive to a low nitrogen diet.