Adding dried distillers grains with solubles influences the rumen microbiome of meat goats fed lespedeza or alfalfa-based diets

• Published in: Small ruminant research 2022-09, Vol.214, p.106747, Article 106747
• Main Authors: Pannell, Donielle, Kouakou, Brou, Terrill, Thomas H., Ogunade, Ibukun M., Estrada-Reyes, Zaira M., Bryant, Voris, Taiwo, Godstime, Idowu, Modoluwamu, Pech-Cervantes, Andres A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Dried Distillers grains; Goats; Microbiome; Rumen
• ISSN: 0921-4488; 1879-0941
• DOI: 10.1016/j.smallrumres.2022.106747

We evaluated the effect of replacement of corn and soybean meal (SBM) with dried distillers grains with solubles (DDGS) in sericea lespedeza (SL; Lespedeza cuneata) and alfalfa (Medicago sativa)-based diets on ruminal fermentation and bacterial community of growing meat goats. Thirty-six male Spanish growing meat goats with an average body weight of 24 ± 1.8 kg were stratified by body weight and assigned to four isonitrogenous (crude protein = 17.1 ± 0.1%) and isocaloric (3.2 ± 0.09 Mcal/ kg DM) diets for 60 d in a randomized design with a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement. The dietary treatments were (1) alfalfa-based diet (ALC), (2) alfalfa + DDGS (ALD; replacement of corn and SBM with DDGS), (3) SL-based diet (SLC) and (4) SL + DDGS (SLD; replacement of corn and SBM with DDGS). The goats were slaughtered, and rumen contents were immediately sampled for 16 S rRNA gene sequencing and rumen fermentation analysis. The analysis of Similarity (ANOSIM) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) effect size (LEfSe) were respectively used to detect microbial community shift and differentially abundant taxa among treatments. Addition of DDGS increased (P