Effects of the Incubation Period of Pleurotus ostreatus on the Chemical Composition and Nutrient Availability of Solid-State-Fermented Corn Stover

Author: mycolabadmin
2023-08-11
View Source

Summary

This research demonstrates how common mushroom fungi can transform agricultural waste (corn stover) into nutritious animal feed through a simple two-week fermentation process. The treatment makes the feed more digestible and nutritious for cattle and other ruminants, offering a sustainable solution for both waste management and animal nutrition. Impacts on everyday life: • Provides a cost-effective way to convert crop waste into valuable animal feed • Reduces agricultural waste and promotes environmental sustainability • Helps lower livestock feeding costs for farmers • Improves the efficiency of animal production systems • Demonstrates practical applications of biotechnology in agriculture

Background

White-rot fungi (WRFs) are known to efficiently degrade lignocellulosic materials through simultaneous attacks on lignin, cellulose, and hemicellulose due to their ability to release both hydrolytic and oxidative enzymes. WRFs are the only fungi capable of complete lignin mineralization and can selectively delignify lignocellulosic substrates to improve their nutritive value for ruminants. However, the process typically requires longer fermentation periods to complete.

Objective

To optimize and improve the feeding value of Pleurotus ostreatus-fermented corn stover by evaluating the effects of five solid-state fermentation times and three in vitro fermentation periods on the chemical composition, dry matter disappearance, microbial mass and volatile fatty acid production of treated and untreated corn stover.

Results

The dry matter, crude protein, ash and non-fiber carbohydrate contents increased quadratically with increases in fermentation time. Organic matter, ether extract, neutral detergent fiber and hemicellulose contents decreased quadratically across treatments. Total gas production and in vitro true dry matter digestibility increased quadratically, while microbial mass and in vitro apparent dry matter digestibility increased linearly. The total volatile fatty acids, propionate and butyrate contents increased linearly, while acetate content and acetate:propionate ratio decreased linearly.

Conclusion

Two weeks of fermentation is sufficient for the biological treatment of corn stover with P. ostreatus to provide a nutrient-enhanced feed resource for ruminants. A long fermentation period is not required to achieve optimal delignification and quality. The treated corn stover showed improved nutritional value and digestibility characteristics after just 2 weeks of treatment.

Published in:Animals,
Study Type:Laboratory Research,
Source: 10.3390/ani13162587