Table 8.
Effect of bromochloromethane (BCM) and seaweed supplementation upon the in vitro and in vivo ruminal fermentation profiles, average daily gain (ADG), and feed efficiency (gain:feed [G:F] ratio) in ruminants.
| Item | Acetate, % | Propionate,% | A/P ratio | ADG, kg/d | G:F ratio | Reference1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| In vivo | ||||||
| Steers (Brahman-crossbred) | ||||||
| Control (no BCM) | 79.6 | 17.0 | 4.7 | 0.5 | 0.08 | 1 |
| BCM (0.3 g BCM/100 kg BW) | 78.0 | 17.6 | 4.5 | 0.5 | 0.09 | |
| Rate of change, % | −2.0 | 3.4 | −4.3 | 0.0 | 11.1 | |
| Steers (Brahman) | 2 | |||||
| Exp. 1 (n = 11): Angleton grass-based diet | ||||||
| Control (no BCM) | 61.6a | 21.7b | 2.9a | 0.23 | 0.012 | |
| 0.29 g BCM/100 kg BW | 59.4b | 24.4a | 2.5b | 0.22 | 0.013 | |
| Rate of change, % | −3.6 | 11.1 | −13.8 | −4.34 | 7.6 | |
| Exp. 2 (n = 8): Rhodes gras-based diet | ||||||
| Control | 64.8 | 18.6 | 3.5 | 0.59 | 0.033 | |
| 0.29 g BCM/100 kg BW | 45.7 | 20.8 | 3.0 | 0.62 | 0.039 | |
| Rate of change, % | −29.4 | 10.6 | −14.2 | 4.8 | 15.4 | |
| Steers (Brahman-crossbred) | 3 | |||||
| Control (no BCM) | – | – | – | 1.4 | 0.18 | |
| 0.3 g BCM/100 kg BW | – | – | – | 1.5 | 0.19 | |
| Rate of change, % | – | – | – | 6.7 | 5.3 | |
| Holstein steers, g/100 kg BW | 4 | |||||
| Control (no BCM) | – | – | 4.75a | 0.56b | 0.05 | |
| 0.18 g BCM/100 kg BW | – | – | 2.27b | 0.71a | 0.07 | |
| Rate of change, % | – | – | −52.2 | 21.1 | 28.6 | |
| Sheep (A. taxiformis), % DM | 5 | |||||
| 0 (control) | 65.0 | 20.8 | 3.19 | – | – | |
| 0.5 | 56.3 | 27.7 | 2.10 | – | – | |
| 1.0 | 54.4 | 31.5 | 1.76 | – | – | |
| 2.0 | 55.0 | 30.8 | 1.86 | – | – | |
| 3.0 | 54.5 | 32.0 | 1.77 | – | – | |
| Wether | 6 | |||||
| Control (no BCM) | 51.9 | 26.8 | 1.94 | – | – | |
| 2.5, mg BCM/kg BW | 53.6 | 24.6 | 2.18 | – | – | |
| 3.0, mg BCM/kg BW | 49.3 | 28.1 | 1.75 | – | – | |
| Dairy goats | ||||||
| Control (no BCM) | 61.4 | 11.1b | 5.71a | −6.1 | – | 7 |
| 3.0 mg BCM/kg BW |
60.3 |
15.5a |
3.92b |
−6.6 |
– |
|
| In vitro | ||||||
| A. taxiformis, % OM | 8 | |||||
| 0 (control) | 66.4a | 22.5c | 3.0a | – | – | |
| 0.5 | 57.2a | 27.9b | 2.1b | – | – | |
| 1.0 | 47.4b | 33.2b | 1.4b | – | – | |
| 5.0 | 31.5b | 46.8a | 0.7c | – | – | |
| 10.0 | 29.1b | 46.7a | 0.6c | – | – | |
| BCM, % OM | 8 | |||||
| 0 (control) | 74.0a | 19.4b | 3.8 | – | – | |
| 1.0 | 69.5b | 20.8b | 3.4 | – | – | |
| 5.0 | 61.9b | 26.8b | 2.4 | – | – | |
| 10.0 | 57.4b | 29.6a | 2.0 | – | – | |
| 25.0 | 57.4b | 29.3a | 2.0 | – | – | |
| A. taxiformis, % OM | ||||||
| 0 (control) | 75.0a | 19.2b | 3.9a | – | – | 9 |
| 2 | 60.4b | 28.7a | 2.1b | – | – | |
| Macroalgae2, 0.2 g OM/g of grass | 10 | |||||
| Freshwater algae | 65.5 | 24.7 | 2.7 | – | – | |
| Green seaweed | 64.6 | 25.9 | 2.5 | – | – | |
| Brown seaweed | 63.3 | 29.3 | 2.7 | – | – | |
| Red seaweed | 59.3 | 28.4 | 2.1 | – | – | |
BW = body weight; DM = dry matter; A. taxiformis = Asparagopsis taxiformis; A/P ratio = acetate-to-propionate ratio.
a, b, c Values in a column with different superscript letters were significantly different (P < 0.05).
Sources: 1 = Denman et al. (2007b), 2 = McCrabb et al. (1997), 3 = Tomkins and Hunter (2004), 4 = Johnson et al. (1972), 5 = Li et al. (2018), 6 = Sawyer et al. (1974), 7 = Abecia et al. (2012), 8 = Machado et al. (2015a), 9 = Machado et al. (2016), 10 = Machado et al. (2014).
Data was presented as an average mean value from the fresh-water algae (3 species), green seaweed (7 species), brown seaweed (6 species), and red seaweed (4 species) species.