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The ability of the ficin enzyme technique to predict the in situ degradability of lucerne N
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 November 2017
Extract
The assessment of protein degradability in the rumen is a complex process. The infinite combination of interaction between the rumen microbial population and the nature of the protein fed to the animal makes the estimation of ruminal protein degradability very arduous. At present the in situ technique is the most popular means of predicting ruminal nitrogen (N) degradation. However this procedure is slow, expensive and relies on the use of numerous surgically prepared animals. A number of studies (Assoumani et al., 1992; Aufrère and Cartailler, 1988) have shown that the use of in vitro methods using proteases can predict with reasonable accuracy the extent of protein degradation. The objective of this experiment was to examine the possibility of replacing the in situ technique with an in vitro procedure based on the use of the ficin protease to predict the extent of N degradation.
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- Copyright © The British Society of Animal Science 1999