Acta Veterinaria et Zootechnica Sinica ›› 2019, Vol. 50 ›› Issue (12): 2458-2469.doi: 10.11843/j.issn.0366-6964.2019.12.010

• ANIMAL NUTRITION AND FEEDS • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Effects of Oregano Essential Oil and Monensin in Diet on Serum Biochemical Parameters, Digestive Enzyme Activities and Ruminal Microflora of Holstein Calves

BAI Yan1, LANG Xia2, WANG Cailian2, LIANG Tingyu1, LIU Ting1, GONG Xuyin2, GAO Liangshuang1, SHI Xiaolei1, WU Jianping1*   

  1. 1. College of Animal Science and Technology, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou 730070, China;
    2. Animal Husbandry, Pasture and Green Agriculture Institute, Gansu Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou 730070, China
  • Received:2019-07-16 Online:2019-12-23 Published:2019-12-20

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of oregano essential oil (OEO) and monensin (MON) on serum biochemical parameters, digestive enzyme activities and ruminal microflora of Holstein calves. Eighty Holstein calves ((41.31±2.23)kg) were randomly divided into 4 treatments and with 20 calves each. The calves in control treatment were fed with whole milk and pellet feed. The calves in other treatments were fed with whole milk and pellet feed, and supplementation with 4 g·kg-1 OEO, 3.6 g·kg-1 MON and a mixture of 7.6 g·kg-1 OEO and MON, respectively. At 56 and 70 days of age, six male calves were selected from each treatment with similar body weight, blood samples from the jugular vein were collected from each calf to determine serum biochemical parameters and rumen fluid was collected by oral catheter to determine digestive enzyme activities and ruminal microflora. The results showed that:1) OEO had significantly increased the concentration of TP, SOD, GSH and GSH-Px in calf serum at 56 days of age(P ≤ 0.05); MON had a tendency to decrease BUN concentration in calf serum at 56 and 70 days of age(P<0.10). 2) OEO had significantly decreased the number of F. succinogenes in the rumen of calves at 56 and 70 days of age (P<0.05), and had significantly increased the number of R. albus(P ≤ 0.05); MON had significantly decreased the number of protozoa in the rumen of calves at 56 and 70 days of age (P ≤ 0.05), and had a tendency to decrease the number of R. albus (P<0.10), at 56 days of age, MON had decreased the number of R. flavefaciens in the rumen of calf(P<0.10); There was significant interaction between OEO and MON on B. fibrisolvens in the rumen of calves at 56 and 70 days of age (P ≤ 0.05), OEO and MON had a tendency of interaction on P. ruminicola at 56 days of age (P<0.10), however, there was significant interaction between OEO and MON on P. ruminicola at 70 days of age (P ≤ 0.05). 3) OEO and MON had a significant interaction on the concentration of pepsase in rumen of calves at 56 and 70 days of age (P ≤ 0.05). These results indicated that dietary supplementation with OEO could enhance immunity and antioxidant capacity of calves. MON was better than OEO in inhibiting the number of protozoa in the rumen. The effect of OEO of increasing the number of protein-degrading bacteria was better than MON. In conclusion, supplementation with OEO in diet can improve the health status of calves, modify rumen microflora activity and population. OEO can be used as a natural plant antibiotic to replace other antibiotic growth promoters for preventive treatment of calves.

Key words: oregano essential oil, monensin, Holstein calf, serum biochemical parameters, digestive enzyme activities, ruminal microflora

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