Effect of total mixed ration composition on fermentation and efficiency of ruminal microbial crude protein synthesis in vitro

The goal of this study was to identify dietary factors that affect fermentation and efficiency of microbial crude protein (CPM) synthesis in the rumen in vitro. We used 16 total mixed, dairy cow rations with known digestibilities that varied in ingredient composition and nutrient content. Each ration was incubated in a Rusitec (n = 3) for 15 d, and fermentation of different fractions was assessed. Observed extents of fermentation in 24 h were 35 to 47% for organic matter, 25 to 60% for crude protein, 3 to 28% for neutral detergent fiber, and 31 to 45% for gross energy. Organic matter fermentation depended on the content of crude protein and neutral detergent fiber in the ration. We studied net synthesis of CPM using an N-15 dilution technique and found that 7 d of continuous N-15 application are needed to achieve an 15N enrichment plateau in the N of isolated microbes in this type of study. The efficiency of CPM synthesis was 141 to 286 g/ kg of fermented organic matter or 4.9 to 11.1 g/ MJ of metabolizable energy, and these ranges agree with those found in the literature. Multiple regressions to predict the efficiency of CPM synthesis by diet data showed that crude protein was the only dietary chemical fraction that had a significant effect. Fat content and the inclusion rate of corn silage in the ration also tended to improve efficiency. We suggest that microbial need for preformed amino acids may explain the crude protein effect. A large part of the variation in efficiency of microbial activity still remains unexplained.