Effect of Molybdenum and Sulphur on Copper Status and Mohair Quality in Merghoze Goat

Abstract

This study was made on the effects of a normal diet containing 12.8 mg Cu kg(-1) DM which added gradually molybdenum and sulphur on the copper status and fibre quality in eight 1-year Merghoze goat. One group (n = 4 mean weight 31 +/- 2.0 kg) was treated with Mo and S supplements for 20 weeks, the second group (n = 4 mean weight 32 +/- 2.1 kg) served as controls. In addition of blood sampling for measuring copper status in plasma, the copper content and quality of fleeces were measured every 6 weeks. Mohair measurements were carried out by taking patch samples (10 x 10 cm2) from the mid-side area of the goat. The analytical set consists of plasma copper concentrations (Pl Cu), Trichloroacetic acid soluble copper concentrations (TCA-Cu), and fleece copper content. The results indicated that the addition of 20-30 mg Mo and 2-2.5 g S kg(-1) DM to the normal diet did produce sub clinical copper deficiency in treated goats. One such visual symptom was the loss of fleeces pigmentation and poorer crimp being observed. The Pl Cu minus TCA-Cu plasma became more than 2 microM in the blood of treated goat, indicating that there was a significant thiomolybdate formation in the body. The results showed that there was a significant decrease in Pl Cu (p < 0.05) along with a significant increase in thiomolybdate (MoS) production after 4 months. The sub clinical signs of copper deficiency and mohair quality are likely to be from high molybdenum intake and thiomolybdate formation in the body.