The Effect of Ultrasound Processing and Exogenous Cellulase Supplementation on the Ruminal Degradability of Palm Date Seeds

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of sonication and enzyme supplements on rumen degradability of date palm seeds (DPS). The effect of alkali-assisted sonication and the addition of cellulase enzyme supplements (40 endoglucanase units/g dry matter) derived from Aspergillus niger or Trichoderma longibrachiatum on DPS ruminal degradability were evaluated under in vitro conditions. The in vitro ruminal degradability of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and organic matter (OM) for the unsonicated seeds was not affected (p>0.10) by enzyme supplements. On the other hand, alkali-assisted sonication increased the in vitro rumen degradability of seeds’ NDF and OM and the addition of Trichoderma longibrachiatum cellulase enzyme to sonicated seeds slightly but significantly increased (p<0.01) their in vitro NDF and OM degradability. The results indicate that sonication along with alkali pretreatment could improve the NDF and OM degradability of DPS in rumen. The pretreatment combined effect of ultrasound and Trichoderma longibrachiatum cellulase enzyme could be beneficial in increasing the inclusion rate of DPS in ruminant animals’ diets.