Microbial Activity in the Bovine Rumen

Microbial Activity in Bovine Rumen

bengal, asparagus agar (Allen, 1951), asparagus agar plus 1:80,000 crystal violet, and asparagus agar plus 1:15,000 rose bengal. The addition of dyes decreased the number of contaminants but also appeared to inhibit the development of the rhizobia. All plates were examined daily for 2 weeks. Smears of colonies which resembled rhizobia were examined. Pure cultures were obtained by the use of bot...

The magnitude of the microbial fermentation in the bovine rumen.

Incubation inside the bovine rumen.

I . Details are given for the construction and use of an apparatus for the incubation of rumen liquor in semi-permeable sacs inside the bovine rumen. It was found practicable, using one animal, to incubate simultaneously samples of strained diluted rumen liquor in three identical vessels, each of 100--120 ml capacity, for periods of up to 23 h. 2. The optimal conditions for experiments of this ...

Citric acid metabolism in the bovine rumen.

Rumen microorganisms rapidly metabolize citric acid to carbon dioxide and acetic acid. The rate of metabolism varied between 0.00008 and 0.76 mumoles per g per min, the rate becoming higher as the citric acid concentration increased. The addition of potassium chloride to rumen contents decreased the rate of utilization. The results indicate that dietary citric acid is unlikely to accumulate in ...

Microbial digestion of hemicelluloses in the rumen.

The ruminant animal is dependent upon anaerobic microorganisms for the digestion of plant materials in the rumen. The resultant microbial cells and fermentation acids are primary nutrients for the animal. Polysaccharides, such as hemicelluloses, are only partially degraded because of the chemical complexities of plant materials and biochemical processes involved in degradation.