Part played by Ciliate Protozoa in Rumen Function

IN general, the population of ciliate protozoa in the rumen is large with more than 10 6 organisms/g of rumen contents and a mass approximately equal to that of the rumen bacteria 1 . These protozoa are known to possess active systems for hydrolysing carbohydrates, proteins and lipids, but their eff...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Nature (London) 1968-02, Vol.217 (5130), p.777-778
Main Authors: YOUSSEF, F. G, ALLEN, D. M
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Humanities and Social Sciences
letter
multidisciplinary
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
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Summary:IN general, the population of ciliate protozoa in the rumen is large with more than 10 6 organisms/g of rumen contents and a mass approximately equal to that of the rumen bacteria 1 . These protozoa are known to possess active systems for hydrolysing carbohydrates, proteins and lipids, but their effects on the efficiency of utilization of nutrients are not clear. In some experiments, removal of the fauna of the rumen has not influenced performance 2–4 while in others the patterns of rumen fermentation, growth rate and efficiency of food utilization were altered 5–7 . Protozoa have been implicated as causal agents in bloat, and Clarke 8 has shown that the introduction of an anti-protozoal agent to the rumen of cattle reduces the rate of rumen fermentation and the susceptibility to bloat.
ISSN:0028-0836
1476-4687
DOI:10.1038/217777a0