Use of ionophores as feed additive for Beef Cattle

Abstract

The animal nutrition was the need to conduct research to determine the nutritional requirements of animals in accordance with their respective species and categories, so that they could do a proper balancing of the diets of the same. Today we know that in the case of ruminant animals that make digesting food through fermentation processes performed by microorganisms, there is a loss of about 12% of the energy contained in food, and up to 50% of dietary protein may be degraded, and ammonia and lost through the urine. In need of directing the direction of research in order to reduce these losses were discovered ionophores; product that was initially used for controlling coccidiosis in poultry, and had features that act selectively on populations of microorganisms, which were introduced in the diets of ruminants, which showed characteristics affect the performance of gram-positive bacteria that produce carbon dioxide and methane that cause the loss of dietary energy for the animal, favoring the populations of gram-negative bacteria resistant to drugs, and are able produce propionic acid, reducing the occurrence of losses. So, ionophores had their increasing use every day, and today in countries like the U.S. is used in more than 90% of cattle feedlots, so you can see that the extensive use is in accordance with the benefits of the drug that country.