In vitro gas production tests on irradiated-chicken feathers to estimate its nutritive value as feed for ruminants

• Main Authors: Deocaris, Custer C., De Vera, Azucena C., Ellana, Marivic M., Asaad, Celia O.
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2003
• Subjects: Feathers as feed; Rumen fermentation; Ruminants—Feeding and feeds; Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/faculty_research/5298
• Institution: De La Salle University

Chicken feathers are a highly abundant agro-waste product containing high amounts of protein from keratin. However, these are not practically utilized as animal feeds since they provide little, if any, nutritional value due to low digestibility in its natural state. Using an in vitro fermentation approach, the ruminant feed potential of chicken feathers treated with gamma-radiation was estimated. Gas production within an incubation period of 96 hours was monitored and values were fitted in the rumen degradability model by McDonald and Orskov (1981). Radiation treatment which could induce depolymerization of chicken feather keratin allowed for the improvement in the nutritive value for ruminants by liberating an additional 7.2% in metabolizable energy (ME) (P<0.005) for ruminant livestock. However, increasing the absorbed dose to 50 kGy resulted in significantly lower energy value for the feather substrate possibility accrued from the induced protein-protein cross-linking phenomenon.