1Doctorado en Ciencias Biológicas, División de CBS, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana Unidad Xochimilco, 04960, México D.F.
2Colegio de Postgraduados, Programa de Ganadería, Montecillo, México, Km 36.5 Carr. México-Texcoco Edo. De México, 56230 México
*For correspondence Phone-Fax: 52-595-95-2-02-79; E-mail: maria@colpos.mx
An experiment was conducted to determine the effects of amylase on starch digestion and sheep performance (45 d) with a sorghum based diet (68%). Thirty-six sheep (Creole x Suffolk, 21.66±6.5 kg BW) were assigned the following doses of amylase from B. licheniformis (g enzyme/kg dry matter of grain): 0.0, 0.6, 1.2, 1.8, 2.4 and 3.0. In vivo digestibility (%) of dry matter was improved (P<0.05) (72.8 vs 81.7%) with amylase. The average daily weight gain (g) and feed conversion were not affected by treatment. Even when dry matter digestibility was increased with amylase from B. licheniformis, sheep performance was not with the exogenous amylolytic enzyme.
Bacillus licheniformis, enzyme, sorghum, sheep
