Fermented cottonseed and rapeseed meals outperform soybean meal in improving performance, rumen fermentation, and bacterial composition in Hu sheep

Halidai Rehemujiang; Hassan Ali Yusuf; Tao Ma; QiYu Diao; Luxin Kong; Lingyun Kang; Yan Tu

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2023.1119887

Fermented cottonseed and rapeseed meals outperform soybean meal in improving performance, rumen fermentation, and bacterial composition in Hu sheep

Front Microbiol. 2023 Mar 16:14:1119887. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1119887. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Halidai Rehemujiang¹, Hassan Ali Yusuf^{1

2}, Tao Ma¹, QiYu Diao¹, Luxin Kong¹, Lingyun Kang¹, Yan Tu¹

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Feed Biotechnology of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Feed Research of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China.
² Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Husbandry, Somali National University, Mogadishu, Somalia.

Abstract

Background: This study examined the effects of substituting cottonseed meal (CSM) or rapeseed meal (RSM) for soybean meal (SBM) on Hu sheep performance, rumen fermentation, and bacterial composition. 51 four-month-old indigenous male Hu sheep with starting body weights of 22.51 ± 2.84 kg and similar origins were randomly assigned to three treatments; (1) non-fermented total mixed ration (TMR) with SBM (CK), (2) fermented TMR containing CSM (F-CSM group), and (3) fermented TMR containing RSM (F-RSM group).

Results: The three groups' intake of dry matter differed significantly (p < 0.05). In terms of average daily gain, the F-RSM group outperformed the CK and F-CSM groups (p < 0.05). The pH of the rumen was substantially lower in the CK group than in the F-CSM and F-RSM groups (p < 0.05), and the F-CSM group had greater amounts of volatile fatty acids (VFA) than the F-RSM and CK groups. In comparison to the CK group, the microbial crude protein yield was significantly higher in the F-CSM and F-RSM groups (p < 0.05). The F-CSM group significantly outperformed the F-RSM group of pepsin and cellulose enzyme activity (p < 0.05). The relative abundance of Bacteroidetes was greater in the CK and F-RSM groups compared to the F-CSM group (p < 0.05). In comparison to the other groups, Firmicutes were less abundant in the CK group (p < 0.05). Prevotella was present in a higher relative abundance in the F-CSM and F-RSM groups than in the CK group (p < 0.05). Prevotella was greater in relative abundance in the F-CSM and F-RSM groups than in the CK group (p < 0.05). The relative abundances of Veillonellaceae_UCG-001 and Lachnospiraceae_XPB1014 correlated with rumen butyric acid content and NH₃-N content (p < 0.05). Gene function prediction revealed that replacing SBM with F-CSM or F-RSM in the diet of Hu sheep can promote glycan biosynthesis and metabolism.

Conclusion: The replacement of F-CSM and F-RSM for SBM has an influence on the richness and diversity of rumen bacteria at the phylum and genus levels. Replacement of SBM with F-CSM increased VFA yield and further promoted the performance of Hu sheep.

Keywords: Hu sheep; cottonseed meal; fermented total mixed ration; rapeseed meal; rumen microbiota.