Vitamins

1
Vitamins

• Lecture 6

2
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.

3
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

4
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

5
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.B12 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.

6
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.

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Vitamin Sources contd

• 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 D2 form in plants, D3 in animal
  products.
• Stable unless mixed with limestone or oxidizing
  compounds- rapid loss in rations.

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Vitamin Sources contd

• 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

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General Rules of Vitamin Supplementation

• Usually limiting in natural diets.
• Vitamin A, D, E, riboflavin, pantothenic acid,
  niacin, choline, and B12
• 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.

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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.