Kinetics of dietary nitrogen utilization in cattle and buffaloes fed diets containing NPN salts, using15N as an isotopic tracer

Nitrogen kinetics was compared in cow and buffalo calves (4 groups). Groups 1 and 3 were fed basal diet supplemented with urea (test diet 1) and group 2 and 4 were fed basal diet supplemented with urea plus ammonium sulphate (test diet 2). Dietary nitrogen metabolized to ammonia in the rumen was 50, 46, 40 and 37% in groups 1 through 4 respectively. Of the total dietary nitrogen, 67-70% was apparently digested in reticulorumen, of which 27, 34, 40 and 48% was used as amino acids and peptides, and the remainder 73, 66, 60 and 52% was degraded to ammonia in groups 1 through 4 respectively. On an average, 65% of the ammonia produced was irreversibly lost and 35% was recycled. Of the ruminal ammonia produced 21% was recycled within nitrogen pools. Higher incorporation of ruminal 15NH3 into suspended bacterial-N was observed in test diet 2 as compared to that in test diet 1. Per cent plasma urea-N and urinary-N derived from ruminal ammonia decreased in test diet 2 as compared to that in test diet 1. Better utilization of nitrogen from urea plus ammonium sulphate diets was thus ascribed to additional sulphur availability from ammonium sulphate and proper N : S ratio. (author). 5 tabs., 9 refs