Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41314162›Full record

ArticleAnimal : an international journal of animal bioscience2025

Supplementation with willow containing condensed tannins shifted nitrogen excretion from urine to faeces in yearling ewes.

J P Thompson, O Cristobal-Carballo, T Yan, W E Zeller, S Huws, L Safoi, A D Southam, C Ludwig, G R Lloyd, S Stergiadis and 1 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Animal : an international journal of animal bioscience, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

J P ThompsonInstitute of Global Food Security, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, UK; School of Biological Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK.
O Cristobal-CarballoSustainable Livestock Systems Branch, Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute, Hillsborough, UK.
T YanSustainable Livestock Systems Branch, Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute, Hillsborough, UK.
W E ZellerUSDA-ARS, U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center, Madison, WI, USA.
S HuwsInstitute of Global Food Security, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, UK; School of Biological Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK.
L SafoiPhenome Centre Birmingham, School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK.
A D SouthamPhenome Centre Birmingham, School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK.
C LudwigPhenome Centre Birmingham, School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK; Department of Metabolism and Systems Sciences (MSS), College of Medicine and Health, University of Birmingham, West Midlands, UK.
G R LloydPhenome Centre Birmingham, School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK.
S StergiadisSchool of Agriculture, Policy and Development, University of Reading, Reading, Berkshire, UK.
K TheodoridouInstitute of Global Food Security, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, UK; School of Biological Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast, UK. Electronic address: k.theodoridou@qub.ac.uk.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Ruminants have poor nitrogen use efficiency, with 70% of total ingested nitrogen (N) excreted. Much of this excreted N is in the form of urinary urea which is easily hydrolysed to ammonia. Increasing ammonia production has negative impacts on environmental and human health. Dietary supplementation with condensed tannins (CTs) could be a solution as they bind to the N source (protein) in the rumen, preventing degradation, allowing more N to reach the abomasum for digestion and absorption. However, if this N is not absorbed, it results in a shift in N excretion from urine to faeces. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of willow containing CTs through a 21% DM dietary inclusion of two willow varieties (Salix Beagle: BG and Salix Terra Nova: TN) mixed with grass silage. Willow treatments: BG and TN had a CT concentration of 1.20 and 0.08% DM, with the control (SIL) containing no CTs. Twelve replacement yearling ewes were used in a 3 (treatment) × 3 (period) Latin square design experiment with a single period lasting 28 days and the overall experiment lasting 12 weeks. Structural arrangement of CTs showed BG had a greater (P < 0.001) proportion of prodelphinidin (62.7%) compared to TN (5.42%). The higher CT-containing treatment (BG) showed a 13 and 12% lower absorbed N-to-N intake ratio relative to SIL (P < 0.001) and TN (P < 0.01), respectively. There were no differences in the proportion of retained N to N intake among feed treatments (P = 0.44). BG had a 22 and 17% greater faecal N to N intake ratio relative to SIL (P < 0.001) and TN (P < 0.01), respectively. BG led to a 19% higher nitrogen excretion in faeces and a 19% lower nitrogen excretion in the urinary form compared to SIL (P < 0.01). However, BG reduced (P < 0.01) the nutrient digestibility, compared to SIL and TN. This resulted in the ratio of digestible energy to gross energy intake to be 8 and 6% lower for BG relative to SIL (P < 0.01) and TN (P < 0.01), respectively. Feed treatments had an effect on blood and urine metabolites involved in protein metabolism. Isobutyrate was 17 and 28% higher in BG and TN relative to SIL (P < 0.01). While in urine, creatinine was 61% lower in TN relative to BG (P < 0.05). CTs from the willow Beagle variety could redirect nitrogen excretion from urine to faeces, offering a promising strategy to reduce ammonia emissions and mitigate the environmental footprint of the ruminant industry.

Indexed as

NitrogenProanthocyanidinsSalixSheep, DomesticAnimal FeedAnimal Nutritional Physiological PhenomenaAnimalsDietDietary SupplementsFecesFemaleSheepNitrogenProanthocyanidinsBioactive compoundsDigestibilityEnergyMetabolitesSustainability

Identifiers

PMID41314162
PMCPMC12708440

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.