TABLE 4.
Digestion of purified cellulose by rumen contents in media without (control) or with added antibiotics after an initial 0-, 5-, 10-, or 20-h incubation and autoclaving
| Initial incubation (h)a | Amt of cellulose digested in initial incubation (mg) | Amt of cellulose digested (mg) in second fermentation (72 h)b
|
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Control | Antibiotics | ||
| 0 | 0 | 67.5 ± 3.6 (34.5)c | 53.0 ± 8.5 (27.0) |
| 5 | 6.1 ± 5.5 (3.0) | 69.2 ± 2.8A (38.5) | 37.6 ± 7.4B (22.1) |
| 10 | 16.2 ± 5.6 (8.1) | 52.8 ± 6.4A (35.3) | 6.0 ± 3.4B (11.1) |
| 20 | 63.4 ± 3.8 (32.5) | 16.3 ± 4.1C (40.8) | 0.1 ± 0.1D (32.5) |
a
All tubes were autoclaved for 20 min at 121°C after the initial incubation time and then inoculated again with rumen contents for the second fermentation.
b
Means in the same row without a common superscript differ (P < 0.01 for A and B; P < 0.02 for C and D).
c
Total percentage of cellulose digested in all incubations, single or combined where applicable.