Department of Biological Sciences, University of Sargodha, Sargodha, Pakistan.
Biol Trace Elem Res. 2011 Jun;141(1-3):126-30. doi: 10.1007/s12011-010-8731-0. Epub 2010 Jun 5.
The present investigation was carried out to assess the transfer of copper element from the soil to forage plants consumed by the ruminants in two different pastures at the Livestock Experimental Station at Sargodha, Punjab, Pakistan. Soil and forage samples were collected periodically from two different pastures and analyzed after wet digestion. The survey of copper flow from forage from both pastures in the grazing period exhibited a consistent pattern of decrease from sampling periods 1 to 4 across all the sampling periods. In the legumes and grass pastures, it was decreased regularly and reduced up to 50% to that at the beginning across all the samplings. The copper concentration was higher in the legume pasture than that of grass pasture and sufficient to fulfill the requirement of grazing animals, while in grass pasture, it was higher at the first two sampling periods but dropped to a marginal deficient level at sampling period 3 and reached at the severe deficient level at the fourth sampling period during this investigation. The soil-plant transfer factor for Cu was higher in legume pasture compared to its counterpart. It was found that with the increase of forage maturity, a significant reduction in the forage Cu concentration was observed reaching its minimum level at the last sampling period in the grass pasture. These concentrations were within the marginal and severe deficient levels and provide for only 76% of the ruminant requirements. The naturally upset balance of Cu offers a potential hazard not only to both pastures, but also to the Cu status of grazing ruminants therein. This necessitates the provision of additional amount of Cu mixture in the nutrition of livestock for health and reproduction potential enhancement of the animals being reared at that farm. Supplementing the deficient mineral with locally available Cu feed sources like green fodders, cakes, and brans or providing region-specific mineral supplements would alleviate the deficiency of copper during the late season at the livestock farm.
本研究旨在评估铜元素从土壤向反刍动物所食用的饲草植物的转移。在巴基斯坦旁遮普省萨戈达的家畜实验站的两个不同牧场上进行了这项研究。定期从两个不同的牧场上采集土壤和饲草样本，并在湿消化后进行分析。在放牧期，从两个牧场上的饲草中采集的铜流量调查显示，在所有采样期内，从第 1 期到第 4 期，铜的含量呈持续下降趋势。在豆科牧草和禾本科牧草中，铜的含量呈规律下降，到所有采样结束时，铜含量减少了 50%。在豆科牧草牧场上，铜的浓度高于禾本科牧草，足以满足放牧动物的需求，而在禾本科牧草牧场上，在前两个采样期内，铜的浓度较高，但在采样期 3 时下降到边缘缺乏水平，在本研究的第四个采样期达到严重缺乏水平。豆科牧草牧场上的土壤-植物铜转移系数高于其对应值。研究发现，随着饲草成熟度的增加，饲草铜浓度显著降低，在禾本科牧草牧场上，最后一个采样期达到最低水平。这些浓度处于边缘缺乏和严重缺乏水平，仅满足 76%的反刍动物需求。铜的自然失衡不仅对两个牧场构成潜在威胁，而且对牧场中的放牧反刍动物的铜状况构成威胁。这就需要在牧场动物的营养中提供额外的铜混合物，以增强动物的健康和繁殖潜力。通过补充当地可用的铜饲料来源，如绿色饲料、饼肥和麸皮，或提供针对特定地区的矿物质补充剂，可以缓解牧场后期的铜缺乏问题。
