Seasonal Variation in Chemical Composition, Ruminal Fermentation, and Biological Characteristics of <i>Paulownia shan tong</i>: In Vitro Potential Use by Sheep and Goats
Hajer Ammar,
Ahmed E. Kholif,
Manel Missaoui,
Halimeh Zoabi,
Soha Ghzayel,
Mario de Haro-Martí,
Izabelle Auxiliadora Molina de Almeida Teixeira,
Sondos Fkiri,
Mohamed Larbi Khouja,
Mahmoud Fahmy,
Gouda A. Gouda,
Secundino López,
Mireille Chahine
Affiliations
Hajer Ammar
Ecole Supérieure d’Agriculture de Mograne, University of Carthage Tunisia, Zaghouan 1121, Tunisia
Ahmed E. Kholif
Dairy Science Department, National Research Centre, 33 Bohouth St. Dokki, Giza 12622, Egypt
Manel Missaoui
Ecole Supérieure d’Agriculture de Mograne, University of Carthage Tunisia, Zaghouan 1121, Tunisia
Halimeh Zoabi
National Research Center, Beit Qad Agricultural Station, Jenin 206, Palestine
Soha Ghzayel
Ministry of Agriculture, National Agriculture Research Center biotechnology Department, Jenin 227, Palestine
Mario de Haro-Martí
Gooding County Extension, University of Idaho, 203 Lucy Lane, Gooding, ID 83330, USA
Izabelle Auxiliadora Molina de Almeida Teixeira
Department of Animal, Veterinary and Food Sciences, University of Idaho, 315 Falls Ave, Twin Falls, ID 83301, USA
Sondos Fkiri
Institut National de Recherche en Génie Rural, Eaux et Forêts (INRGREF), Rue Hédi El Karray El Menzah IV BP 10, Ariana 2080, Tunisia
Mohamed Larbi Khouja
Institut National de Recherche en Génie Rural, Eaux et Forêts (INRGREF), Rue Hédi El Karray El Menzah IV BP 10, Ariana 2080, Tunisia
Mahmoud Fahmy
Dairy Science Department, National Research Centre, 33 Bohouth St. Dokki, Giza 12622, Egypt
Gouda A. Gouda
Dairy Science Department, National Research Centre, 33 Bohouth St. Dokki, Giza 12622, Egypt
Secundino López
Instituto de Ganadería de Montaña (CSIC-Universidad de León), Finca Marzanas, 24346 Grulleros, Spain
Mireille Chahine
Department of Animal, Veterinary and Food Sciences, University of Idaho, 315 Falls Ave, Twin Falls, ID 83301, USA
This study was conducted to determine the seasonal variation (two seasonal harvests during winter and spring) in some chemical and biochemical characteristics of Paulownia shan tong leaves. To achieve this, we analyzed the chemical composition in terms of dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP), cell-wall content (neutral detergent fiber (NDF)), acid detergent fiber (ADF), acid detergent lignin (ADL), and lipids. The phenolic compounds (PC) and antioxidant activity (AA) of the leaves were also determined. In vitro gas production (GP) and nutrient degradability were evaluated using two ruminal-content donors (sheep and goats). Higher (p P. shan tong, while higher concentrations of OM (90.5%), lipids (3.02%), NDF (69.7%), ADF (54.8%), ADL (35.4%), total flavonoids (0.45 mg catechin equivalents/mg DM), and total phenolics (2.52 mg gallic acid equivalents/mg DM) were observed in the spring harvest. Higher asymptotic GP and rate of GP (p p P. shan tong. Higher (p P. shan tong compared to the spring harvest. In conclusion, based on the chemical composition and the kinetics of in vitro gas production, P. shan tong leaves seem to be characterized by a good nutritive value and could be considered as an alternative feed resource for ruminants.
