Abstract
The purpose of this study was to assess the in vitro antimicrobial activity of alkaloid-enriched extracts from Prosopis juliflora (Fabaceae) pods in order to evaluate them as feed additives for ruminants. As only the basic chloroformic extract (BCE), whose main constituents were juliprosopine (juliflorine), prosoflorine and juliprosine, showed Gram-positive antibacterial activity against Micrococcus luteus (MIC = 25 μg/mL), Staphylococcus aureus (MIC = 50 μg/mL) and Streptococcus mutans (MIC = 50 μg/mL), its influence on ruminal digestion was evaluated using a semi-automated in vitro gas production technique, with monensin as the positive control. Results showed that BCE has decreased gas production as efficiently as monensin after 36 h of fermentation, revealing its positive influence on gas production during ruminal digestion. Since P. juliflora is a very affordable plant, this study points out this alkaloid enriched extract from the pods of Prosopis juliflora as a potential feed additive to decrease gas production during ruminal digestion.
Highlights
Since the last century, increasing atmospheric concentrations of methane have been reported [1,2], which has aroused worldwide interest in reducing emissions of enteric greenhouse gases into the atmosphere [3]
The Dragendorff’s reagent, whose composition generally consists of an acidic solution of the iodide complex of bismuth (III), has been a practical chemical tool commonly used for thin layer chromatography (TLC) detection and identification of alkaloids since 1867 [37,38]
The crude ethanolic extract (EE) of P. juliflora pods exhibited Dragendorff-positive spots when subjected to TLC analysis, and, EE was submitted to the acid-base treatment in order to obtain extracts enriched with alkaloids
Summary
Since the last century, increasing atmospheric concentrations of methane have been reported [1,2], which has aroused worldwide interest in reducing emissions of enteric greenhouse gases into the atmosphere [3]. Ruminants typically lose 2%–12% of gross energy intake during this process [1]: this is a further reason why feed additives, such as ionophores, are used to reduce enteric CH4 emissions and improve feed conversion efficiency by diminishing acetic and butyric acid production in favor of propionic acid, which is more energetically efficient [5]. There is a real and growing demand for new feed additives to replace these compounds. In this connection, the scientific community initiated efforts to exploit natural products as feed additives, since many natural compounds and plant extracts afford some of the benefits of antibiotics [8,9]
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