• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.203-210
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• 1996

A 13-month study was conducted to determine the monthly variation of crude protein(CP), cell contents(CC), fiber fractions and mineral concentrations of paragrass [Brachiaria mutica (Forsk.) Stapf.] and stargrass (Cynodon plectostachyum Pilger) and to estimate the correlations among the nutrient fractions and climatic factors. The forage samples collected by hand plucking were found to contain CP and mineral concentrations. i.e. calcium(Ca), magnesium(Mg), potassium(K) and zinc(Zn) above the critical levels based on ruminant veeds. Monthly differences(p<0.05) were observed in all CP, CC, neutral detergent fiber(NDF), acid detergent fiber(ADF), hemicellulose(HE), cellulose(CE) and acid detergent lignin(ADL) between the two grass species. Monthly differences(p<0.05) were also observed in all concentrations of forage Ca, K, phosphorus(P), copper(Cu) and Zn except in Mg of both grasses and K of stargrass. Species differences(p<0.05) were observed in all nutrient fractions except Mg and K concentrations. Rainfall had positive correlations to CP, P(p<0.01) and CC(p<0.05); it had negative correlations to NDF(p<0.05). ADF, CE, Ca, Cu and Zn(p<0.01). Temperature, humidity and daylength had also some correlations to various nutrient fractions.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.378-384
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• 1997

The ruminal solubility of copper (Cu), manganese (Mn), molybdenum (Mo), and zinc (Zn) in eight Philippine forages was studied. These forages were: 1) grasses: paragrass (Brachiaria mutica (Forsk.) Stapf), stargrass (Cynodon plectostachyum Pilger), and napiergrass (Pennisetum purpureum Schumach.); 2) creeping legumes: calopogonium or calopo (Calopogonium muconoides Desv.) and centrocema (Centrocema pubescens Benth.); 3) tree lequmes: gliricidia or kakawate (Gliricidia sepium (Jacq.) Walp.), leucaena or ipil-ipil (Leucaena leucocephala (Lam.) de Wit.), and sesbania or katuray (Sesbania grandiflora (L.) Poir). Nylon bags with samples were incubated for 0, 3, 6, 12, 24, 48 and 72h in three rumen cannulated sheep fed with timothy hay (Phleum pratense L.) at 2% body weight/d. The 0-h bags were washed with deionized water. There were species differences (p < 0.05) on the different solubilities of trace elements. At O-h incubation, the trend of solubility was Mo (54%) > Zn (43%) > Cu (38.7%) > Mn (29.5%). At 3-h incubation, all the elements except Mn had an average solubility above 50%. Combining particulate passage rate (1.9%/h) and various trace elements disappearance rates, the effective ruminal solubilization (ERS) of trace elements were computed. The ERS across species ranged from 44.6 to 89.9% for Cu, 29.9 to 84% for Mn, 66 to 95.1% for Mo, and 30.1 to 82.3% for Zn resulting to a trend of Mo > Zn > Cu > Mn.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.75-81
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• 1996

The dry matter (DM) disappearance and ruminal solubility of calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P), magnesium (Mg) and potassium (K) in eight Philippine forages were studied. The forages were: paragrass (Brachiaria mutica (Forsk.) Stapf), stargrass (Cynodon plectostachyum Pilger), napiergrass (Pennisetum purpureum Schumach), clopo (Calopogonium mucconoides Desv.), centrocema (Centrocema pubescens Benth.), gliricidia (Gliricidia sepium (Jacq.) Walp.), leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala (Lam.) de Wit.) and sesbania (Sesbania grandiflora (L.) Poir. Nylon bags with samples were incubated for 0, 3, 6, 12, 24, 48 and 72 h in rumen cannulated sheep. The 0-h bags were washed with deionized water. For the 0-h samples, 20.4, 17.2, 50.7, 52.2 and 80.1% of the DM, Ca, P, Mg and K was solubilized, respectively. At 3-h incubation period, DM disappearance was 10 percentage units higher than that of 0-h incubation whereas mineral disappearance increased by 43, 21, 30 and 13% for Ca, P, Mg and K, respectively. At 72-h incubation period, greater proportion of DM, Ca, especially in P, Mg and K was solubilized with a value of 73.8, 71.5, 85.6, 91.4 and 98.2%, respectively. The average particulate passage rate obtained in the present study was 1.9%/h where as the range of disappearance rates of various mineral elements were : 0.4 to 1.2%/h for Ca, 0.1 to 1.6%/h for P, 0.7 to 2%/h for Mg and 0.1 to 2%/h for K. The effective ruminal solubilization (ERS) of the macrominerals was calculated where particulate passage rate and disappearance rate of the various elements were included in the equation. The ERS of Ca, P, Mg and K was 50.0, 72.6, 83.9 and 94.5%, respectively. Species differences (p<0.05) on the various mineral solubilities were also observed. This study shows that ruminal solubility of macrominerals in selected Philippine forages is K > Mg > P > Ca.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.139-147
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• 1996

Eight Philoppine forages were studied to obtain the following: 1) nutrient concentrations and digestibility, 2) distribution of the various minerals in fiber fractions through mineral analyses of neutral detergent fiber(NDF) and acid detergent fiber(ADF) residues, and 3) correlation coefficients among the factors affecting forage quality and mineral concentrations. These Philippine forages were paragrass [Brachiaria mutica (Forsk.) Stapf], stargrass (Cynodon plectostachyum Pilger), napiergrass (Pennisetum purpureum Schumach.) calopo (Calopogonium muconoides Desv.), centrocema (Centrocema pubescens Benth.), gliricidia [Gliricidia sepium (Jacq.) Walp.] leucaena [Leucaena leucocephala (Lam.) de Wit.] and sesbania [Sesbania grandiflora (L.) Poir]. Species differences(p<0.01) were observed on various nutrient fractions including mineral composition and digestibility. The cell wall(NDF) fraction, prepared by boiling in neutral detergent solution, contained the following proportions of the total mineral originally present (%): calcium (Ca), 0.7; phosphorus(P), 14.3; magnesium(Mg), 1.9; potassium(K), 3.7; copper(Cu), 16.4; zinc(Zn), 2.9; molybdenum(Mo), 9.3; cobalt(Co), 16.2; manganese(Mn), 5.6, and iron(Fe), 81.3. The ligno-cellulose(ADF) fraction, prepared by boiling in acid detergent solution, contained the following proportions of the total mineral originally present(%): Ca, 0.2; P, 4.4; Mg, 0.7; K, 2.8; Cu, 32.3; Zn, 1.1; Mo, 8.9; Co, 4.7; Mn, 5.4; and Fe, 36.8. Correlation coefficients among the factors affection forage quality and mineral concentrations were also observed. Evidently, 75 and 45% of the minerals in grasses and legumes was positively correlated to CP and IVDMD, respectively. Moreover, 55, 80 and 75% of the forage minerals was negatively correlated to NDF, ADF and ADL fraction, respetively, implying that most of the minerals reside in the non-structural cell components.