Efficacy of Naturally Occurring Anthelmintics in Fruit By-Products to Control Intestinal Parasites in Small Ruminants

2013 Annual Report for GNC12-161

Project Type: Graduate Student
Funds awarded in 2012: $9,900.00
Projected End Date: 12/31/2014
Grant Recipient: The Ohio State University
Region: North Central
State: Ohio
Graduate Student:
Faculty Advisor:
Dr. Maurice Eastridge
The Ohio State University

Efficacy of Naturally Occurring Anthelmintics in Fruit By-Products to Control Intestinal Parasites in Small Ruminants

Summary

There is a critical need to identify natural anthelmintics for food animal production because of the increased resistance of intestinal parasites to commercial anthelmintics and the inability to use commercial anthelmintics for certified organic food production. Condensed tannins (CT) and flavonoids have been investigated and shown varied efficacy as natural anthelmintics. This research was done to investigate the effects of utilizing by-products of the juice and wine making industries, pomegranate husk (PH) and grape pomace (GP), which both contain these bioactive compounds of interest. An extraction was done on both by-products to determine the concentration of condensed tannin available. Pomegranate husk varieties of interest, Parifanka and Desertnyi, contained approximately 1.49 and 2.02% CT on a dry matter basis (DM), respectively. Grape pomace varieties, Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon, contained 4.83 and 3.68% CT DM, respectively.

 

In vitro batch culture fermentation was conducted in a slope ratio design to determine the effects of the by-products on dry matter digestibility (DMD) when compared to and mixed with a control, alfalfa hay. Both varieties of GP had lower DMD at 96 hours with greater than 70% dry matter remaining (DMR), whereas both varieties of PH had similar digestibilities as alfalfa with approximately 40% DMR. There was an inverse response in DMD when GP was with mixed with the ground alfalfa hay; as the proportion of GP to alfalfa increased, the DMD decreased. Parifanka PH had a DMD similar to alfalfa and did not have a significant effect (P>0.05) on DMD in mixed ratios. Desertnyi PH was observed to have slightly better digestibility than alfalfa and in slope ratio the DMD decreased with increasing alfalfa.

 

In vitro parasitology studies were done on stage three larvae of O. ostetagia using extracts of PH and GP. There were several varieties available of PH so preliminary studies were done to determine two varieties showing highest efficacy on larvae to use in subsequent studies. The Sogidana and Wonderful varieties were used for the PH and Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon varieties were used for GP. Overall, both PH and GP extracts had approximately twice the number of inactive larvae present in the well at 24 hours when compared to the control, 32 to 41% inactivity versus 17% inactivity, respectively. Grape pomace extracts had a marginally greater efficacy on reducing the viability of the parasites than the pomegranate husk extracts at 24 hours when observed at the same concentration of 12.5 mg/ml. The PH had a higher extractability than GP was able to reach concentrations of 50 mg/ml. The Wonderful variety of PH had the highest efficacy against the parasites when compared to Sogidana at the same concentration and against the control.

 

A fecal culture study was done on feces from parasitized lambs from different farming practices (organic versus conventional) in the presence or absence of GP extract (30 g CT/kg DM) to evaluate the effects of GP on egg hatchability and larval development. The GP treatment showed a 100% inhibition of egg hatch into developing larvae when compared to the control distilled water treatment (p<0.01).

 

 

Objectives/Performance Targets

The objectives of the study were:

 

    • Extract and quantify the naturally occurring bioactive compounds in pomegranate husk and grape pomace, as well as determine the effects of these bioactive compounds on ruminal microflora and fermentation

 

    • Determine the effects of pomegranate husk and grape pomace extracts on reducing parasite viability in vitro and to determine if extracts will be detrimental to certain life stages of helminth parasites

 

Impacts and Contributions/Outcomes

The data from the research conducted has shown that grape pomace, a by-product from the wine industry, and pomegranate husk has efficacy and could potentially have practical application in becoming a natural anthelmintic for small ruminants but more in depth studies need to be conducted to verify and finalized application parameters. Pomegranate husk has shown similar digestibility kinetics as alfalfa and could potential be used as a new feedstuff that would add extra benefits of helping control gastrointestinal parasitism in ruminants. Grape pomace fermentation experiements, on the other hand, have shown that inclusion in the diet greater than 25% can lead to decreased digestibility of the diet. Overall, there is potential for added health benefits for both by-products in ruminant diets.

Collaborators:

Dr. Maurice Eastridge

eastridge.1@osu.edu
Faculty Advisor
The Ohio State University
221B Animal Science Building
2029 Fyffe Rd
Columbus, OH 43210
Office Phone: 6146883059
Dr. Steven Loerch

loerch.1@osu.edu
Collaborator
114 Gerlaugh Hall
OARDC-Wooster
Wooster, OH 44691
Office Phone: 3302633900