Browsing by Author "Dr. Peter Ferket, Committee Member"

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    Effects of Enzyme Supplementation in Pigs Fed Corn-Soybean Diets
    (2008-04-29) Phillips, Christina Ellen; Dr. Sung Woo Kim, Committee Member; Dr. Peter Ferket, Committee Member; Dr. Eric van Heugten, Committee Member
    Three experiments were designed to measure the effects of enzyme supplementation on growth performance, ileal digestibility and fecal digestibility on dry matter, protein, gross energy, and amino acids as well as excretion of odor compounds. In experiment 1, an enzyme cocktail containing the activities of protease, cellulase, pentosanase, α-galactosidase, and amylase (Allzyme® Vegpro, Alltech Inc., Nicholasville, KY) was incorporated in a corn-soybean meal diet for growing pigs. The results showed that addition of the enzyme did not improve fecal digestibility, ileal digestibility, or amino acid digestibility when either chromic oxide or acid insoluble ash were used as markers. In experiment 2, the same enzyme cocktail was incorporated in corn-soybean meal diets with or without 30% soy hulls for growing pigs. Results showed that addition of the enzyme to corn-soybean meal based diets alone or with 30% added soy hulls did not improve the apparent ileal or fecal digestibilities of growing pigs. In experiment 3, the same enzyme cocktail was incorporated into a corn-soybean meal based diet with 20% soy hulls and compared to typical corn-soybean diet as well as a corn-soybean meal based diet with 20% soy hulls without enzyme. There were no significant effects of the enzyme added to the corn⁄soybean meal/soy hull diet of pigs on growth performance, carcass characteristics, ammonia emission or odor. However, the addition of enzyme improved gross energy digestibility and improved also improved the digestibilities of Ca, P, Mg, K, Fe, Zn, Cu, and Mn. Overall, our data indicate that addition of enzymes to higher fiber diets show promising results in increasing the digestibility of these feedstuffs.
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    Improving Fat Utilization by the Weaned Pig: Effect of Diet Physical Form, Fatty Acid Chain Length, and Emulsification.
    (2008-04-07) Price, Kathryn Leigh; Dr. Jack Odle, Committee Chair; Dr. Eric van Huegten, Committee Member; Dr. Peter Ferket, Committee Member
    Previous research indicates that dietary fat utilization by the newly-weaned pig is low, while fat digestive capabilities prior to weaning are very high. Sow milk contains approximately 40% fat, whereas nursery diets are rarely formulated to contain more than 5%. The aim of this experiment was to determine if emulsification (plus or minus Tween-80), physical form of the diet (liquid vs dry) or fatty acid chain length (medium (MCT) vs long chain triglyceride (LCT)) effect fat utilization by the newly weaned pig. Two replicates were performed in the summer of 2006 at the NCSU Swine Educational Unit. Pigs (N= 96) were weaned at 20 ± 0.30 d of age (6.8 ± 0.04 kg) and fed one of eight dietary treatments for 14 d according to a 2x2x2 factorial design. The MCT fat contained primarily C8 and C10 fatty acids while the LCT fat was supplied by choice white grease. Each fat was spray dried with or without the inclusion of Tween-80 emulsifier (at 2% w⁄w) and comprised 12% of the final diets. Diets were otherwise formulated to exceed NRC nutrient requirements. Liquid diets were reconstituted with water to 13% dry matter and were offered ad libitum via milk-replacer feeders (Kane Manufacturing). Diet physical form greatly accelerated piglet growth (P < 0.05), with liquid-fed pigs (0.49 kg⁄d) out gaining dry-fed pigs (0.340 kg⁄d) by 44%. Triglyceride chain length also impacted growth (P < 0.05), with pigs fed LCT outperforming MCT-fed pigs by 23%. Effects of emulsifier were not detected (P > 0.1) in growth performance. Accelerated growth was accompanied by elevated feed intake which was 17 % greater for liquid-fed than for dry-fed pigs and was 21% greater for pigs fed LCT vs MCT. Accordingly, gain:feed was improved by 29% in liquid-fed pigs (P < 0.05). A comparison of two digestibility markers, C 36 alkane and Co-EDTA, was examined in this trial. The use of Co-EDTA resulted in a statistically (P < 0.05) greater digestibility over the C 36 marker. However, it is unclear as to which marker is the more accurate when trying to determine fat digestibility. C 36 was used to determine all digestibility data and diet physical form had no effect (P > 0.1) on digestibility. The digestibility of the fat was higher (P < 0.05) in the MCT fat over the LCT fat (98.42% vs 93.39%, respectively). Emulsification increased the digestibility of the LCT fats and this effect was more evident in the long chain saturated fatty acids (P < 0.05). Ileal and Jejunal morphology showed increases in the villus height as the pigs aged (P < 0.05). Emulsification of the fat resulted in an increased Ileal villus height (P < 0.05) in all diets except for the liquid MCT fed pigs that were 14days post weaning. Plasma ketone body concentrations were significantly (P < 0.05) greater in the MCT fed pigs and interaction between chain length and diet physical form was observed. Pigs consuming the dry MCT diet had a higher plasma ketone body concentration followed by liquid MCT, liquid MCT, and finally dry LCT fed pigs. Collectively, we infer that feeding liquid diets containing emulsified long chain triglycerides can increase growth performance for the entire weaning period. Additionally, new processing technologies such as spray drying fat may be beneficial to improving piglet performance immediately post weaning.