Vitamins Lecture 6 Vitamins Organic compound essential for

Vitamins Lecture 6

Vitamins • Organic compound essential for health but only in trace amounts (ppm). • Required for normal growth and maintenance of animal life. • Function as catalyst – Enzymes or coenzymes in metabolic processes.

Vitamin Supplementation • Vitamin [ ] vary tremendously within sources. – In plants the source is affected by: • Harvesting, processing and storage • Species of plant • Part of plant used – In animal tissue the largest sources are: • Liver • Kidney

Vitamin Sources • Vitamins are generally destroyed by Heat – Exposure to air – Sunlight – Oxidizing conditions – Storage conditions that allow mold growth • Better to error on the positive side than have a deficiency

Classification of Vitamins • Water soluble – B vitamins and Vitamin C • B vitamins synthesized in rumen usually not needed • Not stored in body so daily supply is needed if required. – Enough found in feedstuffs • Exception – Vit. B 12 not found in plants – Usually supplemented to ensure adequate amounts in diet. • Fat soluble – A, D E and K – May be stored in body so daily supply may not be needed ? – Vitamin Supplementation is very important in stressful conditions.

Vitamin Sources • Fat soluble vitamins – Vit. A – Carotene • Green and yellow plants Excellent source • Betacarotene maybe important factor affecting reproduction in high producing dairy cows. – Vitamin A Acetate – Vitamin A propionate – Vitamin A palmitate • Can be a problem after processing feed and exposure to air. – Pelleting can reduce vitamin A content up to 40%.

Vitamin Sources cont’d • Vitamin A – antioxidants added to reduce storage losses. – Cost of Vitamin A is cheap therefore should be added to diets to be safe. • Vitamin D – Ultraviolet rays activate a form of Cholesterol in an oil on the skin and converts it to a form of Vit. D which is absorbed. – Important in the metabolism and absorption of Ca – Present in D 2 form in plants, D 3 in animal products. – Stable unless mixed with limestone or oxidizing compounds- rapid loss in rations.

Vitamin Sources cont’d • Vitamin K – Synthesized and absorbed so efficiently almost impossible to cause a deficiency. – Essential for production or synthesis of prothrombin. Related to blood clotting. – Poultry is the only species that may require supplementation. • Vitamin E – Primarily, alpha tocopherol present in most feedstuffs, but highest in grem or germ oil of plants (soybean, cottonseed, corn, etc. – Antioxidant – inhibits or retard oxidation, reduce hemolysis of RBC, stabilizes polyunsaturated fatty acids – Rapidly degraded in heat, light and high trace mineral content of feed

General Rules of Vitamin Supplementation • Usually limiting in natural diets. – Vitamin A, D, E, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, niacin, choline, and B 12 • Biotin may need supplemented in Poultry and Swine. • Vit. K synthesis may be inhibited by some feed additives. However, produced by microbes of the digestive tract.

Summary of Vitamins • Supplementation is usually inexpensive • Animals under stress - Vitamin requirements will change. Vitamin A from 20 – 30, 000 to 50, 000 IU. • Protect from the environment to reduce oxidation. • Utilizes within a couple of days once mixed with other feedstuffs. • Look up specific requirement for the species you are working with. Poultry usually require more than four footed animals.