Levels of endogenous β-glucanase activity in barley affect the efficacy of exogenous enzymes used to supplement barley-based diets for poultry

Abstract

To improve the nutritive value of barley-based diet for broilers, 2 experiments using 2 different barley lots were performed to evaluate the capacity of a mesophilic cellulase when fused to a β-glucan specific family 11 carbohydrate-binding module. The data revealed that the recombinant β-glucanase derivatives were not appropriate for feed supplementation because of a lack of stability at acidic pH levels. However, under the same experimental conditions, a commercial enzyme mixture improved the nutritive value of 1 of the cereal lots used. Analysis of the nutritive value of the 2 barleys revealed intrinsic differences in the levels of endogenous β-glucanase activity. These differences were extensively evident when the studies were expanded to a range of 64 barley lots. Thus, to clarify the effect of endogenous cellulases on the efficacy of exogenous β-glucanases used to supplement barley-based diets for poultry, 2 barley lots presenting low and high levels of endogenous plant cell wall-degrading enzymes were selected. These lots were used to prepare 2 barley-based diets, which were supplemented with or without a commercial enzyme product and fed to broiler chicks. The data revealed that the exogenous enzymes were effective when the basal diet presented low levels of endogenous β-glucanases but were unable to improve the nutritive value of the barley lot displaying higher β-glucanase activity. Thus, these studies suggest that levels of endogenous β-glucanases may affect the efficacy of exogenous enzymes used to improve the nutritive value of barley-based diets for broilers. The development of a quick β-glucanase assay that could be applied for cereal-based feeds may help identify those barley-based diets that are more responsive to the action of feed enzymes.

Fiber source and xylanase on performance, egg quality, and gastrointestinal tract of laying hens

“…According to Lima et al (2007), the addition of exogenous enzymes to the rations of animals has four distinct objectives: the removal or hydrolysis of anti-nutritional factors, increased digestibility of nutrients, breakdown of NSP, and supplementation of endogenous enzymes. Thus, the exogenous enzymes, in addition to facilitating the feed efficiency use, can improve the use of low-cost ingredients for animal feed, since the viscosity of the digesta decreases with use, potentiating the action of endogenous enzymes on the specific substrates (Ribeiro et al, 2011).…”

<b>Effect of using the Matrix Values for NSP-degrading enzymes on performance, water intake, litter moisture and jejunal digesta viscosity of broilers fed barley-based diet

“…High fiber concentration and low energy level, however, are of utmost importance limiting factors for using barley in broilers feed (Ribeiro et al, 2011). These problems have been demonstrated to be attributable to the presence of non-starch polysaccharide (NSP) particularly ß-glucan (Abdulilah, 1995;Gracia, Latorre, Garcia, Lazaro, & Mateos, 2003;Józefiak et al, 2010).…”

Disulfide Bond Engineering of an Endoglucanase from Penicillium verruculosum to Improve Its Thermostability

“…The higher specific activity of the enzyme-engineered forms and the better activity retention at 80 °C, that is, a temperature of a pelletizing stage in the production of animal feeds, allows obtaining the final product with improved properties. In particular, a higher β-glucanase activity in barley-based diets helps to mitigate the antinutritive effect of cereal β-glucans on monogastric animals, particularly in poultry, and therefore, using thermostable enzymes in the preparation of feeds attracts the attention of researchers working in this field [40,41].…”