Effects of Energy Intake on Nutrient Digestibility, Nitrogen Metabolism, Energy Utilization, Serum Biochemical Indices, and Rumen Microbiota in Lanzhou Fat-Tailed Sheep
This study sought to investigate the impact of different levels of dietary maintenance energy metabolism on nutrient digestibility, rumen microbiota composition, and serum biochemical parameters in Lanzhou fat-tailed sheep rams. A total of twenty rams, each aged eight months and with an initial mean...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-03-01
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| Series: | Agriculture |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/15/7/698 |
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| Summary: | This study sought to investigate the impact of different levels of dietary maintenance energy metabolism on nutrient digestibility, rumen microbiota composition, and serum biochemical parameters in Lanzhou fat-tailed sheep rams. A total of twenty rams, each aged eight months and with an initial mean body weight of 27.81 ± 3.38 kg, were selected and randomly assigned to one of four experimental groups. These groups were administered with different levels of metabolizable energy (MEM): low energy (LE), intermediate energy (IE), high energy (HE), and extra high energy (EHE), corresponding to 6.77, 7.22, 7.72, and 8.20 MJ/d, respectively. The results showed a linear increase (<i>p</i> < 0.001) in average daily gain (ADG), dry matter (DM) intake, apparent DM digestibility, and crude protein (CP) digestibility. Conversely, the intake of nitrogen (NI), fecal nitrogen (FN), and manure nitrogen (MN) exhibited a significant linear decrease (<i>p</i> < 0.001). The N utilization efficiency rations of FN/NI and MN/NI linearly decreased (<i>p</i> < 0.001), while RN/NI linearly increased (<i>p</i> < 0.001). Additionally, the intake of gross energy (GE), methane energy (CH4-E), digestible energy (DE), and metabolizable energy (ME) exhibited a linear increase, whereas the ration of FE/GE intake linearly decreased (<i>p</i> < 0.001). The efficiency of energy utilization expressed as a proportion of GE intake (DE/GE intake, ME/GE intake, ME/DE intake, and CH4-E/GE intake) showed linear alterations (<i>p</i> < 0.05) with the increase in the dietary energy supplementation level. The dietary energy level did not exert a significant impact on serum biochemical indices (<i>p</i> > 0.05). At the phylum level, the average abundances of <i>Verrucomicrobiota</i> were significantly reduced in the EHE group compared to the IE group, while the average abundances of <i>Desulfobacterota</i> were significantly lower in the EHE group relative to the LE group. At the genus level, the average abundances of <i>Succiniclasticum</i> were significantly higher in the HE and EHE groups compared to the LE group. In conclusion, the energy level (8.20 MJ/d) significantly enhanced nutrient digestibility, energy, and nitrogen metabolism, and it significantly increased the relative abundances of <i>Succiniclasticum</i>. |
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| ISSN: | 2077-0472 |