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Masters Theses Graduate School
5-2007
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Rodney Lynn Mills
University of Tennessee - Knoxville
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Mills, Rodney Lynn, "Supplementation of Energy and Glucomannan to Alleviate Tall Fescue Toxicosis. "
Master's Thesis, University of Tennessee, 2007.
https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_gradthes/311
This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at TRACE: Tennessee Research and
Creative Exchange. It has been accepted for inclusion in Masters Theses by an authorized administrator of TRACE:
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To the Graduate Council:
I am submitting herewith a thesis written by Rodney Lynn Mills entitled "Supplementation of
Energy and Glucomannan to Alleviate Tall Fescue Toxicosis." I have examined the final
electronic copy of this thesis for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial
fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science, with a major in Animal
Science.
John Waller, Major Professor
We have read this thesis and recommend its acceptance:
Kelly Robbins, Jack Oliver
Accepted for the Council:
Carolyn R. Hodges
Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School
(Original signatures are on file with official student records.)
To the Graduate Council:
I am submitting herewith a thesis written by Rodney Lynn Mills entitled
“Supplementation of Energy and Glucomannan to Alleviate Tall Fescue Toxicosis.” I
have examined the final electronic copy of this thesis for form and content and
recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of
Master of Science, with a major in Animal Science.
John Waller
Major Professor
We have read this thesis
and recommend its acceptance:
Kelly Robbins
Jack Oliver
Accepted for the Council:
Linda Painter
Interim Dean of Graduate Studies
(Original Signatures are on file with official student records.)
SUPPLEMENTATION OF ENERGY AND GLUCOMANNAN TO ALLEVIATE
TALL FESCUE TOXICOSIS
A Thesis
Presented for the
Master of Science
Degree
The University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Rodney Lynn Mills
May 2007
“Listen as Wisdom calls out! Hear as understanding raises her voice!”
-Proverbs 8:1
“The truth waits patiently for you.”
-Anonymous
ii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I know that this dream could not have been a reality without the support of many
individuals. I would first like to thank Dr. John Waller, my mentor, advisor, and friend. I
appreciate his willingness to accept me as his graduate student and listen to all my
questions, concerns, and at times, frustrations. His diligent support of this project and
commitment to my success has been remarkable. Next, I am sincerely grateful and
indebted to Dr. Chris Richards for taking a chance on me and providing me with the
assistantship that has made all this possible. This has truly been a life-changing
experience, and without the risk that he took on me, my life may have turned out very
differently.
I would like to thank Dr. Jack Oliver for serving on my committee. His wisdom
and knowledge in this area inspired me to gain a deeper understanding in this area and to
some extent has shaped my future plans. Thanks also to Dr. Kelly Robbins to agreeing to
serve on my committee and for the committed instruction he has provided in classes that I
have had the privilege of taking with him. Further, I am grateful to Dr. Arnold Saxton for
his assistance with statistics and his patient instruction.
I would like to thank the technical staff, Mrs. Linda Miller and Mr. Eddie Jarboe.
Linda worked diligently to insure that I completed my lab analyses in order to complete
in time. Eddie has always been helpful in making sure that supplies needed for the lab
were acquired in a timely manner.
I would like to thank Brian Campbell and Jeremy Huff for their assistance in the
project. I am enormously thankful to all the graduate students and my friends at
Fellowship Church who have supported me and helped me to stay sane in this project.
iii
They have encouraged me to keep pushing forward and were available to listen to my
complaints when things were not going smoothly.
I am forever indebted to my family. My parents have always pushed me to do my
best. I grew with the understanding that “if it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right.”
Thanks to them for instilling that work ethic in me. My family recognized early in my life
the passion that I have for understanding and for beef cattle and have always supported
my dream. I would like to thank my nephew, Zachary, and my niece, Laura, for helping
me to stay young and remember the value of curiosity. I love them more than they will
ever know.
And last, but indeed the one to whom I am most indebted; thank you, LORD, for
being a constant source of support and encouragement to me. You are the creator of this
species of which I have such an interest. Thank You for Your grace. May my life always
reflect Your goodness to this creation. Soli Deo Gloria.
iv
ABSTRACT
An 84 d randomized block design using 96 beef calves (238.8 + 20.1 kg) in each of two
years was used to assess the efficacy of energy supplementation and glucomannan (MTB)
to alleviate tall fescue toxicosis. Groups of four calves were randomly assigned to 24
endophyte-infected tall fescue pastures (1.23 + 0.06 ha). Pastures of calves were
randomly assigned to treatments: unsupplemented (CON), supplemented with soybean
hulls (SH) at 0.33% BW (DM basis; LO), supplemented with SH at 0.66% BW (DM
basis; HI), LO plus 20 g·hd-1·d-1 MTB-100® (LO-MTB), HI plus 20 g·hd-1·d-1 MTB-100®
(HI-MTB). Calves were weighed and serum collected every 21 days. Fecal grab samples
were taken from d 55 to d 59 and analyzed for dry matter chromium and ergot alkaloid
concentrations. Tympanic temperatures were taken from one calf for 3 days each week
from d 59 to d 84. Data were analyzed using the MIXED procedure in SAS with contrasts
of effects of MTB, level of SH supplementation (LEVEL), MTB x LEVEL interaction,
and CON vs. supplemented (SUPP). Treatments differed in ADG (P < 0.01) with LEVEL
affecting weight gains (P < 0.01). Supplemented calves had increased weight gains
compared to CON (P < 0.01). Supplementation increased gain per hectare (P < 0.01) and
was influenced by LEVEL (P < 0.01). Control calves excreted higher concentrations of
ergot alkaloids than SUPP (P < 0.01). Forage and total DMI increased as a result of
supplementation (P < 0.01). Prolactin levels differed among the treatments on d 63 and
84 (P < 0.01) with increases attributed to LEVEL (P < 0.05). There were differences
between CON and SUPP (P < 0.01) on d 63 and 84, where SUPP increased prolactin
concentrations to twice that of CON. Tympanic temperatures were similar among
treatments (P > 0.05); daily maximum temperatures and diurnal range differed among the
v
treatments (P < 0.01). SUPP animals had lower maximum temperatures and decreased
diurnal range compared to CON (P < 0.01). These findings indicate that SH
supplementation can lessen the severity of fescue toxicosis; however, glucomannan fed at
the current level only affected tympanic temperature.
vi
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………...1
II. LITERATURE REVIEW…………………………………………………...3
Tall Fescue………………………………………………………………..4
Neotyphodium coenophialum……………………………………………7
Mammalian Response…………………………………………………..10
Endocrine Effects……………………………………………………….13
Energy Supplementation……………………………………………….17
MTB-100®……………………………………………………………….18
Other Treatments……………………………………………………….21
Summary………………………………………………………………...23
III. SUPPLEMENTATION OF ENERGY AND GLUCOMANNAN TO
ALLEVIATE TALL FESCUE TOXICOSIS I: PERFORMANCE AND
FORAGE UTILIZATION...……………...………………………………..24
Abstract………………………………………………………………….25
Introduction……………………………………………………………..26
Materials and Methods…………………………………………………27
Results…………………………………………………………………...30
Discussion……………………………………………………………….37
Implications……………………………………………………………..45
vii
Description:the passion that I have for understanding and for beef cattle and have .. such as the Japanese beetle and larvae of the fall armyworm, where . and associates (2001) used parabiotic chambers to examine sites of transport of ergot.
