processing

 Using agricultural by-products is a good strategy to compensate for the lack of common feed ingredients. Date is one of the most important products of dry regions and Middle East countries, which play an important role in the lives of people in these regions. Date kernel is a by-product that remain during date processing. Due to the high lignocellulosic part in date kernel, its proper processing will probably improve the efficiency of its use in livestock feed. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of chemical and biological processing methods on the nutritional value of date kernels.

This research was conducted in two steps of in vitro and in vivo. First, date kernel powder using sodium hydroxide (NaOH, 50 gr/kg of DM) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2, 57 ml/kg of DM) as chemical methods, and Aspergillus niger (5 x 105 spores/ml) and Bacillus subtilis (5×105 dilution/ml) were processed as biological methods. In the in vitro phase, the chemical composition, gas production parameters and digestibility of the samples were measured using the standard methods. Based on the results of this stage, a fattening trial was performed. This experiment was done for 84 days using 18 male Dallagh lambs (24.88±3.03 kg). The lambs were divided into 3 groups, and each group received one of the treatments. The treatments included: 1- basal diet, without date kernels, 2- diet containing date kernels treated with NaOH, and diet containing date kernels treated with H2O2. During the fattening period, the amount of feed intake was calculated daily. Lambs were weighed every two weeks. The feed conversion ratio was obtained by dividing the average dry matter intake by the average weight gain of the animals. At the end of the experiment, 4 hours after morning feeding, rumen fluid was collected to measure pH and ammonia nitrogen. The data obtained from this experiment were analyzed according to completely randomized design.

Processing was effective on the chemical composition of date kernel (P < 0.05). NaOH and H2O2 treatments increased the amount of ash in the samples. All treatments increased the amount of crude protein and ether extract, which was the highest amount in the samples treated with Bacillus subtilis and NaOH. The amount of neutral detergent fiber and acid detergent fiber decreased due to treating with H2O2 and Aspergillus niger. All treatments increased total digestible nutrients, net energy for lactation and net energy for gain. Gas production rate and estimated parameters including metabolizable energy, organic matter digestibility and short-chain fatty acids were increased by H2O2 treatment (P<0.05). The in vitro digestibility of dry matter and organic matter, partitioning factor and microbial biomass produced after 24 hours of incubation in samples treated with NaOH and H2O2 was higher than other treatments (P< 0.05). In the perfirmance trial, the use of date kernel treated with chemical treatments had no effect on feed intake, weight gain and feed conversion ratio of fattening lambs. The pH value and ammonia nitrogen concentration were the same between the different treatments.

The results of this study showed that the use of date kernel powder in the diet had no adverse effect on the performance parameters of lambs. Therefore, due to the cost-effectiveness of this by product, it is suggested to use it up to 15% in the ration of fattening lambs

In the current study, the effects of quinoa seed processing on performance, egg quality traits, antioxidant status and intestinal morphology of 240 laying quails by six treatments including: corn-soybean meal based diet, diet containing 10% raw quinoa seeds, diet containing 10% quinoa seeds soaked in 40ºC water, diet containing 10% quinoa seeds soaked in 1% acetic acid solution, diet containing 10% quinoa seeds soaked in 1% sodium bicarbonate solution, diet containing 10% raw quinoa seeds supplemented with 0.05% Rovabio multi-enzyme in five replications and eight birds per replication, were conducted in a completely randomized design. The raw quinoa seeds feeding decreased egg production, egg weight, egg mass, shell weight, white index, haugh unit, SOD enzyme activity and villus height compared to the control group (p<0.05). All methods of quinoa seeds processing and diet containing raw quinoa seeds supplemented with multi-enzyme caused a significant increase (p<0.05) in egg production, egg weight, egg mass, specific gravity, shell thickness, shell weight, white index and haugh unit compared to the raw seed group. Feeding acetic acid-treated quinoa seeds significantly increased egg production, egg mass, haugh unit, CAT enzyme activity, villus height and the villus height to crypt depth ratio compared to the raw seed and control groups (p<0.05). In conclusion, Soaking quinoa seeds in 1% acetic acid solution by ratio of 1:5 during 24 hours was the best treating method.

Agricultural by-products, which contain high fibre and have low nutritional value, are one of the feed sources for ruminant animals. A variety of cereal residues including wheat straw, corn stover and paddy straw are generally used to supplement the green forage as animal feed. Wheat is an important cereal crop, which generates a huge amount of lignocellulose in the form of straw. Some various strategies have attempted to improve forage quality. These methods include physical treatments (heat, steam and pressure) as well as treatment with chemical treatments such as acids, alkalis, NH3 and ozone. However, using them is associated with some problems as they require complex material and have detriments such as secondary pollution. Recently the researches have focused on biological alternatives, especially since they are environmentally benign and widely acceptable. One of the biological methods is to use micro-organisms including fungi and bacteria many of which had been found to degrade cellulose and other plant cell wall fibers. The cellulase activity of the fungus is premier, whereas bacteria have a faster growth rate than fungi, and there is increasing interest in cellulase production by bacteria and they can generate cellulase much better. Cellulolytic bacteria are present in a variety of sources such as composting heaps, decaying agricultural wastes, soil and gastrointestinal tract of herbivores. These bacteria are presumed to live in both the rumen and in the colon that digest plant cell walls. Annually, large amounts of agricultural residues are produced in countries around the world, including Iran. These agricultural residues are important foods in the diet of ruminants. However, the use of these products as a food source in the diet of ruminants is limited due to their limited biological structure and low protein. Different physical, chemical and biological methods have been used to process wheat straw, all of which aim to break down lignin and make more cellulose and hemicellulose available for fermentation in the rumen. The use of biological processing method by fungi has received more attention due to the lack of environmental pollution. White rot fungi are the only organisms that are able to aerobically break down lignin into CO2 and water. Schizophyllum commune is an edible fungus of the basidiomycete’s family. Spraying of lacase enzyme from Schizophyllum (liquid culture lacase, solid culture lacase and purified lacase) on wheat straw, corn straw and sorghum straw gradually reduces the amount of Neutral Detergent Fiber of straws and As a result, it increases the digestibility of straws. Lignin is an important constituent of these agro-residues which is resistant to most of the bacterial enzymatic systems, as well as non-digestible by ruminants and rumen microflora. Solid state bioprocessing of agro residues by ligninolytic fungi have got the potential to convert these materials into better feed. Beside lignin, these agro residues contain complex polysaccharides (hemicellulose and cellulose) and water-soluble fractions (soluble sugars, some pectin component, some soluble proteins and organic acids). Lignin binds with hemicellulose and cellulose to form a matrix and make these polysaccharides unavailable for the ruminants. Bio delignification of agro-residues has got the potential to convert this biomass into more nutritive and easily digestible feed. Most studied white rot fungi species are quite efficient lignin degrader but it also degrades an enormous amount of organic matter thus limiting its practical use for improvement of animal feed quality. while the pretreated straw may be useful for other purposes including biofuel production. It necessitates the need to look for organisms which can degrade the lignin without causing major loss of other important constituents like hemicellulose and cellulose. The purpose of this experiment was to determine the chemical composition, volume of gas produced, dry matter degradability, degradability of Neutral Detergent Fiber and volatile fatty acids produced by wheat straw processed with Schizophyllum commune under liquid culture and solid culture using nylon bags and gas production method.

To process wheat straw, the straw was first soaked in water for 12 hours and then sterilized in an autoclave at 121 ° C for 20 minutes. For solid culture, a 7-day-old mushroom was transferred to each jar containing sterilized wheat straw and stored at 26 ° C for 25 days. Liquid culture medium containing the secreted enzymes was inoculated after filtration of the fungi on the liquid and into a glass chamber containing sterile and soaked wheat straw and kept at 26 ° C for 25 days. Wheat straw was removed from the jars after 25 days and dried for 4 days at 60 ° C. The gas production of the treatments in glass vials at 2,4,6,8,12,24,48,72,96,120,144 hours and their degradability were measured using nylon bags and three Holstein cows fistulated at 2,4,6,8,12,24,48,72,96 hours of ruminal incubation.

Processing of wheat straw by Schizophyllum commune reduced dry matter and Neutral Detergent Fiber. Solid culture and liquid culture increased the amount of protein from 2.94 to 6.12 and 5.7%, respectively. Cumulative gas production increased during 144 hours of incubation in wheat straw processed by solid culture. Organic matter digestibility percentage, dry matter digestibility percentage and Metabolisable energy in wheat straw processed by liquid culture method showed a significant increase. The amount of crude microbial protein in wheat straw processed by liquid culture method showed a significant increase. Dry matter degradability increased during 96 hours of ruminal incubation and the potentially fermentable portion of processed wheat straw by solid culture. There was no significant difference between different treatments in terms of nutritional value index. The degradability of Neutral Detergent Fiber was reduced during 96 hours of incubation and the effective degradability in the treated groups was reduced. Liquid and solid culture processing increased the total amount of volatile fatty acids and ammonia nitrogen in wheat straw.

In general, processing of wheat straw with Schizophyllum by solid culture method improved some nutritional components, but the addition of fungal liquid culture medium did not have a significant positive effect on increasing the nutritional value of wheat straw.

In order to investigate the effect of alfalfa physical shape and barley grain processing on yield, ruminal parameters and microbial protein synthesis in Dalagh fattening lambs, 30 male lambs of 3.5±1.2 months old with an average live weight of 17±1.1 kg were used.This experiment was performed in factorial form (3×2) based on a completely randomized design with two factors including: physical form of forage and processing of barley grain in 98 days with 6 treatments and 5 replications. Experimental diets included: 1- Chopped alfalfa with whole barley grains 2- Chopped alfalfa with ground barley grains 3- Chopped alfalfa with flaky barley grains 4- Pellet alfalfa with whole barley grains 5- Pellet alfalfa with barley grains Grinded 6- Pellet alfalfa with barley flakes. The daily feed and its residue were weighed and recorded daily for each animal. Rumen fluid sampling was performed on day 84 at 3 hours after feeding. From day 70 of the experiment, the volume of urine produced by each animal was recorded daily for 6 days.The results showed that alfalfa forage in the form of pellets increased the dry matter consumption, increased daily weight, increased propionate content, increased nitrogen, increased microbial protein and decreased acetate and pH (P <0.05). Also, flaxseed and ground barley processing compared to whole barley grain increased daily weight gain and increased propionate, nitrogen and microbial protein levels and decreased ammonia and pH (P <0.05).Keywords: Physical form, Processing, Rumen parameters, Microbial protein, Fattening lambs.

effect of these bacteriaon the performance of fattening lambs, digestibility, fermentation and blood parameters. Thirty Afshari male lambs with an average weight of 32 ± 3 kg and age of four months were used in a completely randomized design. The experimental treatments included diets containing wheat straw processed with four bacterial strains isolated from the gastrointestinal tract of horse (Paenibacillus polymyxa L11, Paenibacillus polymyxa L12Enterobacter cloacae L2 and Escherichia coli Z2) for 6 weeks; and the control treatment. The results showed that bacterial processing increased crude protein and decreased NDF, iNDF and ADF content, as well as increased organic matter digestibility (OMD) and metabolizable energy (ME) of wheat straw compared to the control. The highest amount of OMD and ME was assigned toL11. Apparent digestibility of DM, NDF and ADF, concentrations and ratios of ruminal volatile fatty acid (VFA), ruminal pH and ammonia nitrogen were affected by bacterial processing. The highest nutrient digestibility was assigned to the L11 and and the lowest amount was assigned to the control treatment. The lowest amount of ruminal ammonia nitrogen was observed in L11 treatment. Bacterial treatments increased total VFA, propionate concentration and decreased rumen acetate concentration. According to the results, processing of wheat straw with cellulolytic bacteria isolated from the horse's gastrointestinal tract (especially L11) improved nutritional value of wheat straw. Therefore, it seems that bacterial processing can be a suitable strategyfor better use of crop by-product with low nutritional value.

For this expriment 1440 Ross 308 male broilers (from 1 to 42 days of age) were used in a randomized complete block design with eight treatments in six blocks. Experimental diets included: soybean meal (control treatment), raw soybeans, full-fat soybeans extruded (15%) at 90 and 150°C, and each of them with 0.02% or without (0.0) protease enzyme supplementation. The use of raw soybean compared to soybean meal or extruded full-fat soybean significantly reduced feed intake, body weight and relative carcass weight, as well as increased feed conversion ratio and pancreatic weight (P<0.01). weight gain was improved in diets supplemented by protease enzyme compared to diets containing raw soybean (P<0.01). Feed conversion ratio was improved in diets containing raw soybean and soy bean meal by dietary protease supplementation (P<0.01). Extrusion temperature did not affect the growth performance of experimental birds. Diet containing raw soybean without enzyme increased blood cholesterol levels (P <0.05). According to the findings of this study, the use of protease enzyme in diets containing soybean meal or raw soybean can improve the performance of broilers However, such effect is less pronounced in diets containing extruded full-fat soybean meal.

The trend of changes in the situation of agriculture and animal husbandry in Iran during the last half century has been such that the livestock population has increased significantly and As a result, the nutritional needs of livestock have also increased. In Iran, sheep breeding is a major part of livestock activities. Irregular grazing has caused incessant erosion of pastures and Rising demand for meat has led producers to move from a grazing system to a dense production system, or in other words, a sheep fattening systemt providing food in a fattening period accounts for about 65 to 70 percent of the cost of raising and maintaining livestockt Therefore, physical and chemical processes can increase the nutritional value of feed and improve production efficiency.

In order to investigate the effect of physical form of alfalfa fodder and barley grain processing on yield and nutrient digestibility in fattening lambs of 30 Dalagh breed, 3.5±1/2month-old male lambs with an average weight of 17 ± 1.1 were used. These experiments were statistically analyzed in a factorial experiment based on a completely randomized design with two factors. The experimental variables include: physical form of forage and barley grain processing. In the 98-day period (14 days of habituation and 84 days of the main period) with 6 treatments and 5 replications, the experimental diets were equal in terms of protein and energy content. Consumed feed and the rest of feed were weighed daily and the animals were weighed on an empty stomach every two weeks, after 16 hours of hunger using a digital scale And all statistical analyzes of this design were performed in SAS software version 1/9.

There was a significant difference between different treatments in terms of weight gain. The treatments that used pellet alfalfa in comparison with chopped alfalfa had a higher final weight of 42.81 compared to 41.50 and also had a higher daily weight gain in the whole period of 297.49 compared to 282.94. The dry matter consumption of the whole period in the treatments receiving pellet alfalfa was 1933.49 gr and higher than the treatments receiving chopped alfalfa 1883/76 gr and also the use of pellet alfalfa improved the feed conversion ratio in the third month. Feed digestibility was higher in pellet alfalfa treatments and digestibility of dry matter, netrul detergent fiber and crude protein were statistically significantly different in different treatments. Barley grain processing had a significant effect on end-to-end weight gain and end-of-period weight was reported to be significantly higher than ground barley and whole barley grain in treatments receiving flake barley, respectively. Also, the daily weight gain in the whole period in the treatments receiving barley flakes and ground and whole barley grains were 294.05, 289.40 and 287.20, respectively. Treatments receiving flake barley, ground barley and whole barley grain had higher digestibility of crude protein from 63.96, 62.98 and 61.95, respectively, from right to left.

Forage processing of alfalfa and barley grains means that in the whole processing of feed of fattening lambs, it increases the feed consumption and increases the daily weight and in total a higher final weight in fattening lambs, Also, animal feed processing improves feed efficiency and increases digestibility.

Crop residues such as straws are lignocellulosic by-products which results from crop cultivation. These compounds can be used as carbohydrate and energy sources in ruminant nutrition. The presence of strong physical and chemical bonds between lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose reduces the nutritional value of these materials. Straws produced as cereal by-products are an important feedstuff for ruminants. Howere, they are not preferred by animals due to poor digestibility, low nitrogen and mineral contents. Many of the treatments were conducted to improve the nutritional value of low feed quality including physical, chemical treatments and biological treatments. Several chemical treatment methods have been developed to improve the nutritive value of low quality forages by reducing the concentration of cell walls or increasing their digestion. Alkali treatment is the most widely used method for increasing the degradation of forage cell walls and the main alkalis used are ammonia and NaOH. The underlying principle of the method is partial solubilization of hemicellulose, lignin, and silica and hydrolysis of uronic and acetic acid esters by the alkali (Chesson et al., 1983). Various studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of dry and wet NaOH treatment processes at improving the nutritive value of low quality forages and crop residues (Wanapat et al., 1985; Moss et al., 1990). However, the use of ammonia and other alkalis for forage improvement has been limited by their corrosive nature and the hazards they pose to humans. Recently, several studies showed that the biological treatments of crop residues to improve the accessibility of cellulosic fractions, thus improving their digestibility and feeding value have been attracting the extensive interests. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of different processing methods (chemical and biological) on chemical composition, In vitro gas production parameters and digestibility of wheat straw.

wheat straw was prepared from minoodasht city. The following treatments were: 1) untreated wheat straw (control, CON), 2) CON processed with Urea, 3) CON processed with sodium hydroxide, 4) CON processed with hydrogen peroxide, 5) CON inoculated with Aspergillus niger for 21 days, 6) CON inoculated with Trichoderma harzianum for 21 days, 7) CON inoculated with Aspergillus niger for 40 days and 8) CON inoculated with Trichoderma harzianum for 40 days, in a completely randomized design. In order to processing with H2O2, first the samples pretreated with sodium hydroxide (NaOH, 80 g/kg DM) to attain and maintain a pH of 11.5, then 132 ml H2O2 (purity: 35%) were added. Treated samples were then placed into plastic bags, tied up and stored under anaerobic conditions. Then the bags were opened and samples dried by exposure to air. After processing the chemical composition of the samples was determined using the standard methods. In vitro cumulative gas production was determined using 120 ml serum bottles as described by Theodorou et al. (1994). A buffered mineral solution (Menke and Steingass 1988) was prepared and placed in a water bath at 39 ◦C under continuous flushing with CO2. Rumen fluid was collected before morning feeding from three ruminally fistulated steers fed on a forage diet at a concentration of 40:60. In vitro gas production was measured in triplicate on composite samples from the same treatment silos. For each replicate, a sample of 200 mg DM untreated and inoculated corn silage obtained from the d 45 and 90 mini silos were used. The bottles were then filled with 30 ml of incubation medium that consisted of 10 ml of rumen fluid plus 20 ml of buffer solution and placed in a water bath at 39 ◦C. Gas production was recorded at 2, 4, 8, 16 24, 48 and 72 h. Total gas values corrected for blank incubation and gas values expressed in ml g-1 of DM. A pressure transducer and LED digital read out voltmeter were used to measure the headspace gas pressure in the culture bottles. Volumes of gas at the top of the culture bottles were transferred into a syringe by withdrawal of the syringe plunger until the pressure became zero. A medium similar to one developed for gas production was used for batch rumen culture system to measure pH, and NH3-N and in vitro digestibility. The pH of the media was measured after 24 h incubation. After 24 h incubation, the contents of each glass bottle were empty, strained through four layers of cheesecloth and then 10 ml of strained rumen fluid was acidified by 10 ml of 0.2 N HCl for determination of NH3-N using the distillation method. Finally, all contents remaining in the bottles were filtered through nylon bags, oven dried at 60 °C for 48 h and analyzed for IVDMD and IVOMD.

Results showed that there were significant differences among treatments on chemical composition (p < 0.05). The highest and the lowest DM content were related to control treatment and soaked treatments. Sodium hydroxide and hydrogen peroxide treatment's had highest and urea treated wheat straw had lowest Ash content. Processing with two kind of fungi had no effect on chemical composition (p>0/05). Different processing methods had significant effect on potential and rate of gas production (p < 0/05). Soaked and trichodermal treated wheat straw had lowest and sodium hydroxid and hydrogen peroxide had highest gas production potential. Processing with Sodium hydroxid and hydrogen peroxide increased DM and OM digestibility significantly, Howere, Soaked wheat straw had lowest digestibility, PF and microbial crud protein.

Generally, processing with Sodium hydroxide and hydrogen peroxide had more effect on improving the nutritional value of wheat straw.

This experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of processed date pit on broiler performance. In this experiment, 280 broiler chicks were usedin a completely randomized design with seven treatments and four replicates. The experimental treatments were: 1- control (diet without date pit), 2-10 percent raw date pit, and treatments 3 to 7- were 10 percent date pit that processed with steam pressure, NaOH, and fermented with Lactobacillusfermentum, Bacillus subtilis, and Aspergillus niger respectively. The crude protein content of processed date pit was higher, and the ether extractcontent was lower (exept NaOH) than raw date pit (P<0.05). The feed intake, body weight gain, feed conversion ratio and cecal microbial populationof broiler chickens were not affected by experimental treatments. The small intestine length of birds that fed diets containing processed date pit withsteam pressure and NaoH was significantly reduced in comparison with birds resived diets containing fermented date pit with Aspergillus niger andwithout date pit (P<0.05). The highest amount of litter dry matter and lowest amount of excreta ash was observed in groups fed diet containing rawdate pit (P<0.05). According to the results of this study, the processing methods of date pit has no effect on broiler performance and cecal microbialpopulation. Therefore, due to the high cost of processing, and the favorable effects of feeding raw date pit on broiler litter quality, the use of raw datepit in broilers diet is recommended.

This research was conducted in order to investigate the effect of different physical and biological processing methods on the chemical composition, gas production parameters and in vitro digestibility of barley grain in a completely randomized design (6 treatment and 3 replicates). Treatment were: un processing barley grain (control), Steam-flaked (for 3-5 minutes), yeast treated (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and steam-flaked, microwaved (850 W for 3 minutes), yeast treated and then microwaved and yeast treated, steam-flaked and then microwaved. The chemical composition of the samples was determined using the standard methods. Gas production test was used to estimate the parameters of gas production of samples. In vitro digestibility of the samples was determined by the batch culture method. Processing methods were effective on chemical composition of treatment. Crude protein was increased by different treatments. The highest amount was observed in yeast treated, steam-flaked and then microwaved (14 percent). Treatments have no effect on neutral detergent fiber of barley grain. Processing decreased gas production of barley grain and lowest amount of these trait was observed in yeast treated, steam-flaked and then microwaved (91.36 ml/200 DM). Treatment has no effect on dry matter and organic matter digestibility. Microbial mass production and its efficiency were increased by all treatments except the microwave treatment and the highest increase was seen in steam-flaked + yeast treatment (183.11 mg/g DM and 0.42 respectively). In general, the results showed that different processing methods can significantly affect the nutritional value of barley grain.

Cereal gains are important source of energy in livestock diet due to high amount of starch they store in their endosperm, but there is a paradox in grains nutrition in ruminants. Without processing, most of grains, specially corn and sorghum, starch will not be effectively digested, but most of processing methods can increase starch degradability in rumen and therefore increase acidosis risk.  The dynamic of starch fermentation in rumen is an important indicator of nutritional value of cereal grain in ruminants nutrition. Due to reduced loss of methane and heat, available energy supply for the animal is greater when starch digested in the small intestine compared to starch fermented in either the rumen or large intestine. Several chemical and physical methods are commonly used for feed processing; however, chemical processing methods have been criticized recently because of toxic chemical remnants. Physical methods such as grinding, rolling, steam flacking and newly microwave irradiation are commonly used for grain processing. Among these, steam flacking and microwave irradiation have been considered as the most favorite methods for horse and ruminants. Steam flacking can increase starch availability and therefore the rate of degradation in rumen, but microwave irradiation has the reverse effect, so that overall degradability and digestibility of starch will be decreased. Yeasts have been used in human food processing for a long time, but recently it has been received considerable attention as a potential method of animal feed processing method. Every processing method will affect the extent and location of starch digestion in a different way, but for ruminant nutrition, the aim of all methods should be to optimize the place and amount of starch digestion in the different parts of digestive tract, so that both the rumen fermentation and intestinal digestion have optimum rate and host animal can achieve the most effective rumen microbial growth and also high glucose absorption in small intestine. None of processing methods can show such a combined effect itself. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the effects of different combinations of physical and biological methods of processing on chemical composition and rumen degradability parameters of corn grain.

This experiment was carried out in a completely randomized design with six treatments, each with three replicates. Experimental treatments includes: 1) un-processing corn grain (control),  2) Steam-flaked corn grain, 3) yeast treated and then steam-flaked corn grain, 4) microwaved (850 W for 3 minutes) corn grain, 5) yeast treated and then microwaved corn grain 6) yeast treated, steam-flaked and then microwaved corn grain. In order to treat with yeast, corn grains were mixed with solution of 4 percent yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) in a 2:1 ratio and then incubated in 35°C for 24 h. Dry matter, organic matter, crude protein and crude fat were determined using AOAC standard methods, and NDF and ADF was determined. Dry matter degradability of samples was determined using nylon bag technique. Samples were placed in the polyester bags and incubated for 0, 3, 6, 12, 24, 36, 48, 72, and 96 h in the rumen of three mature Dalagh rams. Degradability parameters were estimated using non-linear model and all data were finally analysed using SAS (9.1) statistical software.

Results of this experiment showed that type of processing method had significantly effects on chemical composition. Processing methods including microwave irradiation increased dry matter, organic matter, crud protein, neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber, total digestible nutrients, and decreased the amounts of ether extract, non-fiber carbohydrates and neutral detergent soluble fraction of corn grain. treatment have no significant effect on dry matter degradability of corn grain, however, methods including yeast treatment especially the combination of yeast, flaking and microwave methods caused a non-significant reduction in the effective degradability and rapidly degradable fraction and also an increase in slowly degradable fraction of corn grain. Both of non-combined methods (steam flacking or microwave irradiation) caused a reduction in slowly degradable fraction of corn grain. The highest amounts of rapidly degradable fraction were also observed in these two treatments.

The results of this study demonstrated a significant effect of different processing methods on chemical composition of corn grain and had considerable effects on rumen dry matter degradability. Based on these results, it can be concluded that wet or dry heat processing methods are not appropriate processing methods of corn grain for ruminants nutrition, whereas combination of yeast treatment with steam flacking and microwave irradiation can be considered as the most appropriate methods.

This research was conducted to evaluate the nutritional value of vicia faba residues processed with some chemical compounds using in vitro and nylon bag techniques. Treatments included unprocessed vicia faba residues (control) and processed with water (2.5 lit/kg DM), calcium oxide (160 g/kg DM), hydrogen peroxide (57 ml/kg DM) and sodium hydroxide (50 g/kg DM). The chemical compositions of the samples were identified using the standard methods. Ruminal degradability trial was performed using the nylon bag technique. In vitro digestibility of samples was determined by the batch culture method. Processing was effective on the chemical composition of vicia faba residues. Except for water, the other treatments increased Ash and decreased organic matter (p=0.0001). Calcium oxide had the highest effect on the mentioned traits. Crude protein amount was decreased in all treatments (p=0.0001). The lowest amount was observed in calcium oxide and sodium hydroxide treatments. The amount of acid detergent fiber in calcium oxide and hydrogen peroxide treatments was higher than other treatments (p=0.0017). Except for calcium oxide and water, the other treatments increased effective rumen degradability of vicia faba residues at rumen outflow rates of 2, 5 and 8 percent/hour (p<0.0001). The hydrogen peroxide had the greatest effect on increase of effective rumen degradability. Sodium hydroxide treatment increased dry matter (p=0.0001) and organic matter (p= 0.0029) digestibility. Also, calcium oxide and hydrogen peroxide increased the efficiency of microbial yield (p=0.0016). Totally, the results of this research showed that the sodium hydroxide and hydrogen peroxide treatments had the greatest effect on improving the nutritional value of vicia faba residues.

The NorFor is a semi-mechanistic system, which predicts nutrient supply and requirements for maintenance, milk production, growth and pregnancy in catlle. This research aimed to evaluate the effects of grinding, pelleting and steam-flaking of corn grain on protein characteristic using NorFor model according to a completely randomized design. Degradability of dry matter and protein of the processed corn were determined at 0, 2,4,8,16,24 and 48 hours after feeding with technique of nylon bags using three mature rams of Zel breed. By using the data gathered from the measurement of ruminal degradability of crude protein of corn, including soluble crude protein (sCP), potentially degradable crude protein (pdCP), degradation rate of potentially degradable crude protein (kdCP), indigestible crude protein (iCP) in feedstuff was estimated in NorFor system it was shown that effective degradability (%) of dry matter and protein steam-flaking of corn grain was higher than grinding, pelleting. Also, the slow fraction of grinding of corn grain was higher, both in dry matter and protein degradation. Corn steam-flaking increased soluble protein (sCP) and total soluble protein (sCP+ pdCP) and potential degradation protein, and reduce the kdCP, comparing with corn pletting (397 in contrast of 816) was significantly different (P<0.0 .(In this sdtudy, indigestibility of crude protein (iCP) was very low. The overall findings of this study indicated that increased rumen degradability of dry matter and protein as well as the total soluble protein (sCP+ pdCP) steam-flaking of corn grain was high.

Barley is mainly used as a feed grain for livestock in Iran. Historically, barley has been traded at a significantly lower price than corn in the world market (FAOSTAT 2015). The endosperm of the barley kernel is surrounded by the pericarp, which is overlain by a fibrous hull, which is extremely resistant to microbial degradation in the rumen (Wang et al 2003). Some of the feed processing technique treats that remove or cracked the hull makes the starch more accessible to microbes, and increases the rate and extent of starch ruminal degradation. In these cases, processing is essential to maximize the utilization of barley grain by cattle, but extensive grain processing increases ruminal starch degradation, which often decreases feed intake in ruminants. On the other hand, in some cases, the feeding of barley-based high concentrate diets has been linked to an increased incidence of digestive disorders, resulting reduced feed intake, cattle going off-feed, laminitis, bloat, acidosis, rumenitis, and liver abscesses (Yang et al 2000). It is assumed that the rapid rate of fermentation of starch in barley grain contributes to these nutritional and health problems. Differences in chemical composition exist between barley cultivars. Individual barley varieties differ in terms of the composition of the protein matrix in the starchy endosperm of the grain and this characteristic might be expected to influence degradability in the rumen (Gholizadeh et al 2017). Optimum alteration of the site of starch digestion requires processing methods or conditions that increase starch flow to the duodenum without reducing its total tract digestibility. Additional glucose absorption at the duodenum may reduce the needs for gluconeogenesis and increase productivity of ruminants (Nocek and Tamminga 1991). According to Parrott et al (1969), they have reported improved nutritional efficiency due to grain processing in ruminants. Radiation is a physical process approach that has the potential to replace other methods of processing without affecting the protein structure without radioactive activity, and this process is likely to cause cross-linking and clumping of proteins (Mani and Chandra 2003). Shawrang and Sadeghi (2006, 2007 and 2008) argued that the protective mechanism of proteins from rumen degradation in highly processed feeds has been very wrapped, and chemical reactions such as the millard reaction that occurs during thermal processing may be responsible for the reduction of rumen degradability. These reactions have the effect of converting the protein into resistant compounds to rumen degradation. The ionizer rays affect the structure of the protein and cause it to tear apart. It has been argued that irradiation may form cross-linking and protein binding (Gaber 2005, Ebrahimi et al 2011). Previous studies have confirmed that differences in rate of degradation can occur between barley cultivars. Although, these differences may indicate that certain cultivars of barley are more desirable as feed grains than the others. There are a limited data available for Iranian barley grains and their response to processing to make solid recommendations in this regard. In order to improve the nutritional value of fast fermentation cereal grains in the rumen, gamma irradiation can be used as a suitable treatment method in this regard. It is also important to choose the best radiation duration and dosage in the irradiation method. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of gamma irradiation on ruminal dry matter, starch and crude protein degradability of different varieties of barley grain. Additionally, protein profile in metabolizable protein system was calculated. Barley varieties Makoei, Bahman Abi, and Sahand were irradiated with the use of the gamma ray of 60 cobalt and 50, 100, and 150 KGy doses at the center of radiation in Yazd. Kinetics and parameters of protein and starch degradability of nylon bag samples were evaluated using three male Holstein calves equipped with ruminal fistula at 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 12, 24, and 48 hours based on a completely randomized block design. Incubations were repeated two times to ensure day to day variations. All barley samples were grounded to pass a 2 mm screen. Approximately 5 g (air dry) of samples were weighed in triplicate into 10 cm × 20 cm nylon bags (porosity = 50 μm). Dry matter was determined by oven-drying at 55 °C for 48 h. The crude protein and starch content were determined, accordingly. The protein profile based on the metabolic protein system was determined based on the relevant equations. The amounts of crude protein and starch in the samples before and after incubation were measured using the Kjeldahl system and acid digestion and anthrone, respectively. Parameters of degradability and effective degradability at different rumen crossing velocities were determined by nonlinear equations of McDonald and Erskoff and McDonald using (PROC NLIN) statistical software SAS 9/4. The AFRC equations were used to estimate the amounts of fast rumen protein, slow rumen protein, rumen effective protein, total rumen protein, and rumen nonmodifiable protein. Analysis of variance showed that gamma irradiation at different levels reduced starch and protein degradability in rumen among different cultivars (P<0.05). Among different studied cultivars, the Sahand varietie was affected more than other cultivars. Different responses of barley grain varieties to different levels of processing can be related to the content of nutrients in the fiber shell, the distribution of starch in different grain segments and the difference in the structure of starch granules. The results of this study showed that the cultivation of different barley grain varieties with gamma rays reduced the fast degradability (P<0.05). Based on the results, the differences in the response of different barleys to gamma rays showed that the best response was affect the nutritional parameters in order to improve rumen fermentation, protein degradation, starch and increase starch values can be irradiated at 50 kGy. Gamma irradiation can be used as one of the commonly treatments to reduce the degradability of dry matter, starch and rumen protein, and increase starch and digestible escape protein and fermentation, it improves the rumen's ecosystem and reduced the risk of acidosis.

This research was aimed to evaluate effects of processing on protein and starch degradability parameters of hulled and hull-less barley grain using NorFor system. Two barley cultivar grain treatments, NaOH, Formaldehyde and urea were used at 35, 4 and 35 g/Kg DM, respectively. Using test data derived from the measurement of ruminal degradability of crude protein and starch barlely, the soluble protein (sCP), protein degradation potential (pdCP), fixed rate analysis (kdCP) parameters and starch including soluble starch (sST), starch degradation potential (pdST) and fixed rate analysis were estimated in NorFor system. For measuring ruminal egradability of crude protein, nylon bag method and three rams were used at incubation times 0, 2, 4, 8, 16, 24 and 48 h. The results showed that the hull-less and hulled barley treated with a solution of urea has the highest amount of protein (sCP, 561 and 610 g per kg CP) which had a significant difference with other treatments. The starch solution (sST) in without processing hull-less barley had the highest value which was significantly different from other treatments (P<0.05). The starch degradation potential was the highest in non-processed barley compared to hull-less barley treatments. In general, the lowest sCP and sST were in Hullless barley+ NaoH and Hulled barley + urea in NorFor system, repectively. This would be important for protein and starch passage from rumen.

Effects of different processing conditions in steam flaking was examined on the dry matter and crude protein degradability of barley grain in Holstein cows. This study was conducted as a factorial experiment in completely randomized design. Two levels of pressure (3 and 5 Bar), 3 levels of heating temperature (75, 90 and 105 centigrade), and three levels of the roll interspaces (low, medium and high) were used. In situ ruminal degradability was measured using three ruminally fistulated Holstein cows.Dry matter and crude protein degradability of processed materials were significantly decreased by steam flaking compared with untreated barley (P

This experiment was conducted to study the effect of type of feed processing and type of phytase enzyme on growth performance, calcium, phosphorus tibia and toe ash ,fecal and ileal digestibility of phosphorus in broiler chickens. A total of 420 broiler chicks (Ross 308) were used in a completely random design in the a 2×3 factorial arrangement using two processing methods (pellet and mash) and three groups of enzyme (negative control, natuphos (Aspergillus niger) and Meriphase (E.coli). The experiment lasted up to 42 days of age. Levels of enzymes used in the experiment were 500FTU kg-1. The results showed that pelleting diet significantly increase the average daily feed intake, body weight and significantly improved feed conversion ratio (P