ISSUE FOCUS 52 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE March 2024 DON AND FUM COMBINED LED TO DMI SUPPRESSION AND DECREASED WEIGHT GAIN During a study conducted by Duringer (2021) at Oregon State University, the impact on feed intake was evident when comparing the diets of two different groups of beef steers, as seen in Figure 1. The intake of fattening steers started better for the control animals than those with contaminated diets. Still, quickly after the treatment, the mycotoxins suppressed the intake of the treated animals. The DMI reduction resulted immediately into a decreased weight gain compared to the control. MYCOTOXINS ARE TOXIC TO RUMINAL MICROBES BEFORE BEING TOXIC TO THE COW Mycotoxins disrupt the typical functioning of the microbiota inhabiting the rumen, which is essential for achieving optimal fermentation and feed digestion. As their name implies, mycotoxins are toxic substances that apply an antimicrobial effect, inhibiting the normal activity of the rumen. In Figure 2, we can observe the influence of contamination by multiple mycotoxins on the presence of various microbial groups within the control group, which significantly dampens their activity. However, the supplementation of Mycofix® at two different dosages proved effective in protecting the microbes from the adverse effects of mycotoxins and, as a result, there was a restored microbial growth and activity when compared to the diet contaminated with mycotoxins. Having a higher microbial population in the rumen means they are degrading the feed better and reproducing more. These are positive outcomes in every way for the cow and ultimately for the farm profit. Before using any rumen-boosting additive, properly deactivating mycotoxins in the feed is essential for ensuring maximum nutrient utilization. RECOVERED DIGESTIBILITY, MORE NUTRIENTS AVAILABLE FOR MILK AND MEAT During a trial conducted by Gallo et al. (2021) with relatively low contamination of deoxynivalenol and fumonisins on high-yielding dairy cows, the digestibility of dry matter (DM) and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) was greatly reduced. Thanks to the protective effect of Mycofix® the digestibility was recovered to a level even higher than control (p<0.05), which means that there is an advantage of deactivating mycotoxins even if contamination is very low (control levels). MTX 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 Impact of Mycotoxins in Rumen Microbial Population MTX + 15g MPL Treatment MTX + 30g MPL Rumen microbes-bacteria [x1012 cell/ml] Rumen microbes-Protozoa [x105 cell/ml] Amylolytic [x106 CFU/ml] Cellulolytic [x109 CFU/ml] Total viable bacteria [x109 CFU/ml] Proteolytic [x106 CFU/ml] Figure 2. Influence of contamination by multiple mycotoxins on the presence of various microbial groups (Kiyothong et al., 2012)
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