This paper discusses recent work by the authors which has investigated the nutritional regulation of glycogen concentration in skeletal muscle of sheep and cattle. Several experiments are summarised which show a clear relationship between the level of glycogen in muscle and the intake of metabolisable energy. This translates into strong seasonal effects on muscle glycogen in pasture fed cattle....

Fodder beet (FB) is a source of readily fermentable carbohydrate that can mitigate early spring herbage deficits and correct the negative energy balance experienced during lactation in pastoral dairy systems New Zealand. However, low-fiber high-soluble content both FB bulb are factors promote subacute ruminal acidosis, impairing rumen function limiting marginal milk production response to suppl...

Maximizing milk yield without impairing host health is a great challenge for dairy industry. However, the high concentrate feeding often unavoidably increases the risk of Subacute ruminal acidosis (SARA) in dairy cows, characterized by periodic episodes of low ruminal pH. The economic costs caused by SARA are enormous, while its pathogenesis is not very clear. As the first and the main digestiv...

The aim of this study was to compare rumen pH and time-budget in eight mid-lactation goats receiving two diets in a cross-over design (low-concentrate diet (L): 30% and high-concentrate diet (H): 60% concentrate). Feeding H increased daily intake (4.3 ± 0.08% v. 4.7 ± 0.08% of body weight for L and H, respectively) and daily milk production (3.01 ± 0.130 v. 3.50 ± 0.130 kg/day of 3.5% fat-corre...

INTRODUCTION In modern North American beef and dairy production systems, cattle typically are fed relatively high concentrate diets to achieve maximum production. Usually grains are processed to increase their digestibility in the rumen and in the total digestive tract; this increases feed conversion efficiency and helps reduce feed costs. However, the potential benefits of increased ruminal st...

We used six ruminally cannulated steers in a two-period crossover design to study ruminal fermentative and microbial changes associated with induced subacute acidosis. Steers were adapted to either an 80% alfalfa hay (hay-adapted)- or corn grain (grain-adapted)-based concentrate diet. After feed was withheld for 24 h, steers were overfed with an all-grain diet at 3.5 x NEm daily for 3 d. Rumina...

BACKGROUND The aims of the current study were to evaluate the inflammatory response in cow uterus and to explore the molecular mechanism triggered by high concentrate-induced subacute ruminal acidosis (SARA) in mid-lactating dairy cows. Twelve mid-lactating Holstein cows with an average weight of 455 kg were allocated into two groups subjected to two diets for 18-weeks either a low-concentrate ...

Silage accounts for 30 to 40% of the diet of dairy cattle in over 90% of the dairies in the Southeast. Corn silage is the main silage fed to dairy cattle in Florida and it plays a vital role in supplying digestible fiber and energy to dairy cows. The fiber supply from corn silage is also necessary for stimulating salivation and buffering microbial acid production in the rumen, thereby minimizin...

To determine the effects of DL-malate on ruminal metabolism, four steers equipped with ruminal cannulas were fed an 80% rolled grain (75% corn:25% wheat) diet twice daily with a DMI equal to 2.0% of BW (485+/-24.8 kg). DL-Malate was infused into the rumen on two consecutive days in 500 mL of phosphate buffer to provide 0, 27, 54, or 80 g of DL-malate/d. Ruminal pH linearly increased (P < .01) w...

Alterations in rumen epithelial structure and function during grain-induced subacute ruminal acidosis (SARA) are largely undescribed. In this study, four mature nonlactating dairy cattle were transitioned from a high-forage diet (HF; 0% grain) to a high-grain diet (HG; 65% grain). After feeding the HG diet for 3 wk, the cattle were transitioned back to the original HF diet, which was fed for an...