Affiliations 

  • 1 Product Development and Technical Advisory Services Division, Persiaran Institusi, Malaysian Palm Oil Board, No. 6, 43000, Bandar Baru Bangi, Kajang, Selangor, Malaysia. atikah.ibrahim@mpob.gov.my
  • 2 Gadjah Mada University Faculty of Animal Science, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogjakarta, Indonesia
  • 3 Animal Science Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
  • 4 Faculty of Sustainable Agriculture, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Sabah, Malaysia
  • 5 Product Development and Technical Advisory Services Division, Persiaran Institusi, Malaysian Palm Oil Board, No. 6, 43000, Bandar Baru Bangi, Kajang, Selangor, Malaysia
Trop Anim Health Prod, 2021 Jul 31;53(4):422.
PMID: 34331142 DOI: 10.1007/s11250-021-02863-4

Abstract

Understanding the nature of ruminant nutrition and digestion is essential to improve feeding management and animal production. Among many approaches, manipulating ruminant nutrition and fermentation through feed supplementation is being practised and researched. Over the last decade, the utilization of vegetable oils in feed formulation and their effects on various aspects of ruminants have been reported by many researchers. It is important to understand the lipid metabolism in ruminants by microorganisms because it affects the quality of ruminant-derived products such as meat and milk. Majority of vegetable oil supplementation could reduce rumen protozoa population in ruminants due to the effects of medium-chain fatty acids (FAs). However, vegetable oil also contains unsaturated FAs that are known to have a negative effect on cellulolytic bacteria which could show inhibitory effects of the fibre digestion. In this paper, the physiology of nutrient digestion of ruminants is described. This paper also provides a current review of studies done on improvement and modification of rumen fermentation and microbial population through vegetable oil supplementation.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.