Aerobe and anaerobe facultative Gram-negative bacteria rod-shaped in the ruminal fluid of dairy cattle fed with different diets containing tropical forages

Abstract

The aim of this work was to analyse the population of aerobe and anaerobe facultative Gram-negative rod-shaped in the ruminal fluid of dairy cattle and calves fed with different sources of tropical forage. Samples of ruminal fluid were collected from 30 cows fed with sorghum silage, 32 cows fed with Brachiaria brizantha pasture, 12 calves fed with sorghum silage, and 11 calves fed with sugarcane. Fifteen ml of ruminal fluid were collected by sterile catheter and syringe puncture to the rumen. After serial decimal dilutions, samples were inoculated in plates containing MacConkey agar and incubated at 37 °C for 72 h. Calves fed with sorghum silage showed higher detection rate and larger population of these bacteria (8.4 X 10⁶ colony forming units CFU/ml) when compared with adult cows fed with the same forage (1.4 X 10⁵ CFU/ml). The most frequent genera identified in all groups were Enterobacter, Klebsiella, and Proteus. The most frequently identified bacteria in pasture-fed cows was Enterobacter spp., while Klebsiella spp. was the most frequently identified bacteria in cows fed with sorghum silage. Enterobacter spp. and Proteus spp. were more frequently observed in isolates from calves (P < 0.01). Future studies should clarify the differences between these populations.