Nitrogen Metabolism in Ruminants Feed the bugs Feed the cow.. Digestion in the Rumen: Anaerobic Fermentation It s All About the Bugs! Rumen volume lactating cow = 120,000 ml Rumen bacteria:10,000,000,000/ml Rumen protozoa: 1,000,000/ml Rumen fungi: 1,000/ml 2 Ruminant vs Nonruminant Similarities in N Metabolism 1. At t tissue level Metabolic pathways similar 2. Can synthesize dispensable AA 3. Cannot synthesize indispensable AA Essential AA must be provided from digestive tract 4. Tissue proteins constantly undergoing turnover 5. AA not stored 6. Constant supply of AA required Ruminant vs Nonruminant Dissimilarities in N Metabolism 1. Microbial population has profound effect on AA reaching S.I. a. AA profile at S.I. different from diet Up-grades low quality dietary protein Down-grades high quality dietary protein b. Enables ruminants to use NPN efficiently Ruminants can be productive without a source of dietary true protein c. Animal can survive on low amounts of dietary protein by recycling N (as urea) back to rumen 3 4 Ruminant Classification of Nitrogen crude protein -> soluble protein -> rumen bypass-> undegradable/degradable intake protein (UIP/DIP) -> rumen degradable/undegradable protein (RDP/RUP) Limits to RUP/RDP system no AA balance most feeds contain more RDP than RUP lack of optimal ruminal fermentation when replacement with too much RUP lack of AA uniformity in by product feeds with high RUP 5 6 1
Nitrogen Requirements for Ruminants A. Bug requirements come from 1) NPN (NH3) 2) Degradable protein (amino acids) Considered rumen degradable intake protein (RDP) B. Animal requirements come from 1) rumen undegradable intake protein (RUP) 2) microbial protein True Protein + Amino Acids NPN Mouth Nitrogen Metabolism in Monogastrics minor digestion Stomach Tissues, Milk Primary digestion and absorption Intestines Absorption of amino acids + peptides Excreted Nitrogen Metabolism in the Rumen Rumen/Reticulum Factors affecting RDP True Protein Degradable (RDP) NPN (DIP) Saliva Undegraded intake protein (RUP)/amino acids Amino Acids Excess NH 3 rumen NH 3 Urea-Liver - Urea Microbial Protein Carbon Skeletons Energy Lower gut Excreted in urine Proportion of NPN vs true protein Physical and chemical characteristics of true protein Proteins with extensive disulfide bonds - slowly degraded glutelins, prolamines Linear proteins - rapidly degraded Albumins fraction 1 protein - Primary soluble protein in forages is: F1 ribulose 1,5 biphosphate carboxylase (albumin) Heat treatments Rate of passage from rumen Particle size 10 Why does RDP drive milk yield? Improvements in rumen fermentation Microbial protein synthesis Carbohydrate utilization Fiber digestibility Item DM* NDF* ADF NSC* Ex. RDP stimulates rumen digestibility RDP, % of DM 8 11 % diff 50.2 50.1 42.4 83.1 54.2 52.9 44.0 88.2 7.9% 5.5% 3.8% 6.2% * P <.05 Griswold et al., 2003 11 12 2
However, at the same level of RDP, adding urea further stimulates digestion Item DM* NDF* ADF* NSC* Urea Low High 45.3 59.1 50.4 52.6 39.9 46.4 78.5 92.8 % diff 30.4% 4.5% 16.3% 18.2% * P <.05 Griswold et al., 2003 Why? Fiber digesting bacteria love NPN! 13 RDP stimulates NDF digestion NDF digestion, % 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Linear effect of RUP, P <.05 17.1 9.4 8.5 7.5 4.8 RDP, % of DM Stokes et al., 1991; 37% NSC treatment 14 Digestible intake protein (DIP) and microbial efficiency. 1 Getting the balance right is important: Interaction between RUP, RDP and milk yield 1 Hoover & Stokes, 1991 15 NRC, 2001 16 RDP vs. RUP have we gone too far? Significant increases in RUP feeding Did it improve performance? Review of RUP Milk yield In 127 comparisons from 88 lactation trials, Milk yield was significantly higher in only 17% of comparisons Milk protein % increased in 5% of comparisons, decreased in 22% SBM vs. bypass soy ingredients Bypass increased milk in 6 of 29 comparisons Milk protein decreased in 8 of 29 comparisons 17 Santos et al., 1998 18 3
Why the lack of response to RUP? Poor AA quality of RUP supplements Poor digestibility of RUP supplements Decreased microbial protein production due to shortage of RDP Decreased carbohydrate utilization in the rumen due to shortage of RDP Decreased fiber digestion due to shortage of RDP Comparison of lysine in rumen bacterial protein and feedstuffs % of Protein 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 CGM DDG Corn S Feather Wheat Corn Grass S Barley Sunflower CSM Brewers Alfalfa Meat Canola SBM Fish Blood Rum. Bact. Milk Schwab, 2003 19 20 Over Replacement of Soy Peptides on Ruminal Fermentation Item Peptide added as soy peptide, % of total N 0 10 20 30 NH 3 N, mg/100ml 8.38 7.08 5.14 3.94 Mic N, g/day 1.18 1.37 1.32 1.24 Mc N, G/kg DOM 25.0 26.8 26.6 25.8 VFA/MN, mmol/g 305.1 256.9 254.5 283.1 DOM, % 64.3 67.9 65.3 63.3 ADFd, % 39.6 39.1 36.3 32.1 NDFd, % 49.1 49.6 45.5 42.2 Ammonia is the Central N Compound in the Rumen Factors affecting AMMONIA concentrations in the rumen a. Time of feeding - peak 1-2 hr w/traditional NPN, 3-4 hr w/protein b. Type of protein c. Synergy with CHO and energy d. Location (lower in mat than liquid) 1 Jones et al, 1998 21 22 Bacterial Requirements: 1) AMMONIA 1. NH3 addition to the pool in rumen: a. dietary protein degradation b. dietary NPN c. recycled urea: saliva and rumen wall d. recycling of microbes 2. NH3 disappearance : a. incorporation into microbial protein b. wash out c. absorption into rumen wall 23 Ammonia requirements for bacterial growth 25 to 100% of microbial N from ammonia maximal rate of fermentation in vivo: 5 mg % Satter and Slyter. 1974 Brit. J. Nutr. 32:199 > 20 mg % Mehrez et al. 1977 Brit. J. Nutr. 38:437 most bacteria have ammonia saturation constants <1.5 mg% thus 95% maximal growth at 1mM which is less than shown in vivo. Why are there differences? diurnal variation micro environment 24 4
Effect of Dietary Protein on Variation in Rumen NH3 Diurnal ammonia variation in TMR fed cows (Cows fed 6X pushed up 8X) % Rumen % Protein NH3, mg% of Time 8 < 3 80 11 < 3 50 14 < 3 20 Ruminal Ammonia (mg/dl) 20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 Time After AM Feeding (hrs) TMR 1 TMR 2 TMR 3 Feeding Times 1 Lykos et al., 1997 MSU 25 26 Major Users of Rumen NH3 Fibrolytic Bacteria Nitrogen metabolism cannot use amino acids for making body protein thus they need: NH3 (source of N) and carbon skeletons (back bone of amino acid) 27 Degradation of Protein in the Rumen to Make NH3-N N and Carbon Skeletons Degradation of feed protein by bacteria: NH2 protein ==> Free AA ==> valine -CH-CH-COOH peptides NH3 deamination O isobutyric acid -CH-C-COOH -CH-COOH C02 decarboxylation 28 Use of BCAA and NH3 by Fibrolytics to Make Essential Amino Acids (EAA) NH2 microbial protein <== valine -CH-CH-COOH Use of BCAA by Fibrolytics to Make EAA NH2 microbial protein <== leucine -CH-CH-CH-COOH NH3 transamination O isobutyric acid -CH-C-COOH -CH-COOH C02 carboxylation 29 NH3 transamination O isovaleric acid -CH-CH2-C-COOH -CH-CH2-COOH C02 30 carboxylation 5
Use of BCAA by Fibrolytics to Make EAA valeric -CH2-CH2-CH2-COOH CO2, NH3 proline 2 methyl butyrate isoleucine Ammonia Must Be Assimilated by Bacteria NAD(P)H NAD(P) NH3 ATP ADP+Pi NH3 + 2ketoglutarate Glutamate Glutamine GDH GS NADPH NADP+ -CH2-CH-COOH 31 GOGAT GDH=glutamate dehydrogenase; GS=glutamine synthetase; GOGAT=glutamate synthase 32 Goals for Supplying Nitrogen for the Bugs 1. Maximize bacterial protein from non protein nitrogen (NPN) 2. Minimize ruminal degradation of true protein for that which is needed to maximize microbial protein 500 400 300 200 100 How much microbial N or CP is made in the rumen? Microbial N, grams/d 0 0 5 10 15 20 25 Total Tract Digestion of Organic Matter, kg/d34 What is Microbial Protein Worth? A human consuming a 10 ounce steak eats about 3 ounces of protein Rumen Bacteria Don t Care Where They Get Their Source of NH3-N From But They Do Care How and When They See it Microbes produced in the rumen supply a cow the equivalent of 15-20, 10-oz steaks/day! 35 36 6
Limitations of Microbial Protein Synthesis Three most major limitations Energy available NH 3 available Carbon skeletons (e.g. branched chain fatty acids) Rumen NH 3 Following Protein Ingestion Two most likely limitations Energy available NH 3 available These need to be synchronized 37 38 Rumen VFA from Carbohydrate Sources Matching Protein and Energy Sources 39 40 NPN - SOURCES Traditional Urea: - solid prill form - common NPN supplement - liquid feeds Ammonia:- anhydrous or aqua ammonia added to silage - add to corn silage (35% DM) : - 6-88 lb NH3/ton - raises CP from about 8 to 12% - difficult to work with Urea -> > Ammonia Urea = CO(NH 2 ) 2 O C NH 2 NH 2 Urease from rumen bacteria 41 42 7
Incorporation of NPN into diets a. Use of urea requires adaptation period 3 wks b. Best if in TMR c. Liquid supplements with rapidly degradable CHO d. Avoid slug feeding e. Avoid in diets with wet silages f. Must balance RDP/ RUP Effect of rumen degraded protein and infused urea on microbial yield and fiber & starch & sugar digestion. 1 RDP, 8%DM RDP, 11%DM VARIABLES No Urea Plus Urea No Urea Plus Urea NH 3, mg/100ml 0.26 6.26 0.21 6.11 Microbial N, g/day 1.10 1.92 1.54 2.31 Microbial N, g/kg CHO dig 24.1 35.5 31.3 44.3 ADFd, % 38.7 46.0 41.1 46.8 NDFd, % 47.5 52.7 53.2 52.5 Hemicellulose 55.8 61.6 71.6 60.2 Digestion, % Starch & Sugar Digestion, % 73.6 92.5 83.4 93.0 1 Adapted from Griswold et al, 2003 43 NPN - SOURCES Improved sources E.g. Nitroshure Nitroshure is coated with all natural, GRAS approved materials The controlled release technology used for Nitroshure is patented and therefore is a unique innovation for the feed industry 45 Nitroshure gradually supplies N to the rumen in a similar pattern to soybean meal (isonitrogenous amounts of N) 46 Impact of replacing Urea w/ Nitroshure 100.0 90.0 80.0 70.0 60.0 % 50.0 40.0 30.0 20.0 10.0 0.0 (Artificial rumen study WVU) 90.5 92.7 36.3 41.3 1 Feed N, % Efficiency of N use (Microbial N/ kg DMD) 1 Digested feed N converted to microbial N, %. B A A,B P<0.05 Impact of replacing SBM w/ Nitroshure (Artificial rumen study WVU) Replaced 2.0 lb. of SBM w/.37 lb of Nitroshure, remainder a blend of corn meal and molasses Grams/day 3.0 2.5 2.0 1.5 1.0 0.5 0.0 2.18 2.39 0.69 0.48 2.88 2.87 Microbial prt. RUP Total Control Nitroshure Key pt: Nitroshure maintained the same total protein supply past the rumen by capturing more microbial protein. This difference would equal.63 lb/d more microbial protein in a cow eating 50 lb. 47 48 8
Item DM dig. NDF dig. CHO dig. Changes in rumen performance in response to Nitroshure Control 60.0% 53.7% 46.6% Nitroshure 65.6% 59.4% 50.7% Diff 9.3% 10.6% 8.8% Replaced 2.0 lb. of SBM w/.37 lb of Nitroshure, remainder a blend of corn meal and molasses 49 Nitroshure vs. urea Increases efficiency of N utilization by matching N supply to microbial needs Allows for feeding of higher concentrations of NPN safely Nitroshure Nitroshure vs. true protein More efficient and effective at increasing and maintaining high rumen ammonia concentrations Maintains or improves protein supply to the cow Maintains or improves fiber and overall carbohydrate utilization by the rumen 50 Nitroshure is more efficient than true protein to supply the rumen w/ammonia Energy SBM Nitroshure Urea We must be cautious about excessive ammonia in the rumen Energy Peptides Passive diffusion Ammonia Amino acids Energy Ammonia 51 52 Excessive Protein Degradation or NH3 in the Rumen is Wasteful because it lowers the amount of amino acids available for intestinal absorption Excess ammonia must be detoxified in the liver requires 2 ATP per N Excess ammonia must be detoxified in the liver Requires 4 ATP 53 54 9
Recommendations for Rumen Degradable Protein balancing Item % DM g per day (based on 23 kg DMI) RDP 11 to 12 2500 to 2700 Rapidly degraded N from feeds 2.5 to 3.5 64 to 95 Urea 0.2 to 0.55 45 to 123 Nitroshure 0.3 to 0.8 91 to 182 55 Summary RDP needs to be considered as an important part of the nutrition program in order to maximize effectiveness of protein nutrition RDP sources differ in their utilization and should be blended much in the same manner we blend RUP sources Encapsulated urea can increase the effectiveness of RDP nutrition by allowing for the safe and effective feeding of higher levels of urea 10