ISSUE FOCUS FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE February 2023 41 The quality of dietary protein therefore takes on special relevance during this period in which high protein and amino acid requirements overlap with low digestive capability. That part of the dietary protein that escapes from the digestive processes and is therefore not used by the host animal can be used by pathogenic strains of bacterial species present in the intestine (e.g., E. coli,C. perfringens), promoting the proliferation of these pathogenic populations and, consequently, bacterial enteritis (Palliyeguru et al., 2011). In addition, the fermentation of undigested protein by putrefactive bacteria produces many harmful and toxic compounds, which in high concentrations may have adverse effects on animal growth and performance. The protein fermentation products include amines, indoles, phenols, cresol, and ammonia, which can all negatively affect host or cell health (Apajalahti and Vienola, 2016; Portune et al., 2016). Thus, the amount of undigested dietary protein appears to modify both the diversity and composition of the intestinal microbiota as well as the luminal environment of the gut and peripheral tissues. In addition to protein digestibility, another possible negative effect of dietary protein on gut health in young animals may be determined by the content of antinutritional factors in protein sources. It has been shown that some anti-nutritional factors related to certain protein sources in feed can compromise gut health. In this sense, it has been observed that soy antigen beta-conglycinin induces epithelial damage (Peng et al., 2018) and the undigestible soy galacto-oligosaccharides (stachyose and raffinose) increase excreta moisture and trigger physiological stress (Teague et al., 2021). The choice of highly digestible and clean protein sources is inescapably a measure to be considered when it comes to formulating diets for young animals in order to preserve intestinal health.
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