BIHAR ANIMAL SCIENCES UNIVERSITY

Bihar Veterinary College, Patna

Department of Animal Nutrition

Second Professional Year (UNIT-I)

Harmful Natural Constituents & Common Adulterants

(Lecture-3)
Dr. Kaushalendra Kumar
Assistant Professor, Bihar Veterinary College, BASU, Patna
e-mail: [email protected]
 Point to be discuss………………………..
 Anti-nutritional factors
 Classification of Harmful Natural Toxicants by chemical structure
 Alkaloids
 Glycosides
 Proteins
 Amino Acids and Amino Acid Derivatives
 Carbohydrates
 Lipids
 Metal binding substances
 Resins
 Mycotoxins
 Phenolic compounds
 Other toxins
 Classification of natural toxicants by their occurrence in feeds
 Management of Toxicosis
 Common adulterants in feed and fodder
 Anti Nutritional Factors (ANFs)

• ANFs may be defined as those substances generated in natural feed stuffs

during normal metabolism & by different mechanisms exert effects contrary to

optimum nutrition.

• Harmful natural constituent is a substance which under practical

circumstances can impairs animal metabolism & produce adverse biological

or economic effects in animal production.

Classification of Harmful Natural Toxicants by Chemical Structure

1. Alkaloids :
• Alkaloids (alkali-like) are compounds that contain nitrogen, usually in a heterocyclic ring.

• They are usually bitter and toxic in nature.

Name Source
Nicotine Tobacco
Ricinine Castor plant seeds
Atropine Deadly nightshade
Cocaine Leaves of coca plant
Jacobine Ragwort
Strychnine Seeds of Nuxvomica
Morphine Dried latex of opium poppy
Solanine Unripe potatoes and potato sprouts
2. Glycosides:
• It contains glycan (carbohydrate moiety) & a non-carbohydrate moiety
(aglycone) joined with an ether bond.
• It is usually bitter substances.
• They are classified on the basis of structure & properties of the aglycone.
i. Cyanogenic glycosides:
• They yield hydrocyanic acid (prussic acid) when hydrolysed.
• It is hydrolysed by Beta-glycosides to release HCN, glucose and
benzaldehyde.
• However, glycosides occur in vacuoles in plant cell and enzymes are found in
the cytosol. So, damage to the plant results in the enzymes and glycoside
coming together and producing HCN.
 Cont.....

• The hydrolytic reaction can take place in the rumen by microbial activity,
hence, ruminants are more susceptible to cyanogen toxicity than non-
ruminants.
• The HCN is absorbed and is rapidly detoxified in the liver by the enzyme
rhodanase which converts CN to thiocyanate (SCN).
• Excess cyanide ion inhibits the cytochrome oxidase and stops ATP
formation, tissues suffer energy deprivation and death follows rapidly.
• Drying of cyanogenic leaves may reduce the risk of cyanide toxicity.
• Cattle are more susceptible to HCN poisoning than sheep, horse and pig.
• Immature green Jowar, sudan fodder and linseed may cause HCN toxicity.
 Cont.....

• Immediate treatment of cyanide poisoning: Injecting i/v 3 g sodium nitrate &

15 g sodium thiosulphate in 200 ml distilled water for cattle & for sheep 1 g
sodium nitrate & 2.5 g sodium thiosulphate in 50 ml H2O.
• Some glycosides such as Amygdaline (Almond), Dhurrin (Jowar and,
Dhatura, immature grasses), Linamarin (Linseed, cassava, pulses).

ii. Goitrogenic glycosides:

 It decreases production of the thyroid hormones (Thyroxine, T4 & Tri-
iodothyronine, T3) by inhibiting their synthesis by thyroid gland.
 As a result, the thyroid enlarges to compensate for reduced thyroxin output,
producing goitre.
 Cont.....

 Goitrogenic glycosides are commonly found in Brassica spp. such as

cabbage, turnip, kale, rapeseed, mustard green etc.
 Glucosinolates are formerly called thioglucosides.
 Myrosinase is released from plant tissue by crushing (mastication) & it also
produced by rumen microorganisms.
 Glucosinolates are always accompanied by the enzyme myrosinase
(thioglucosidase) which are capable of hydrolyzing them to thiocynates and
isothiocynates to venyloxazolidinethione which is potently goitrogenic
causes depressed iodine uptake and liver damage.
 Ruminants are less susceptible than pig and poultry.
 Brassica anaemia factor:
• Two types of sulphur containing compounds that limit the feeding value of
brassica crops such as glucosinolates and S- methylcysteine sulfoxide (an
amino acids) .

• In the brassica it may occur at levels as high as 4-6% of the dry matter.

• The SMCO is a fairly rare amino acid, found only in brassica, garlic, and
onion.

• It leads to RBC hemolysis and cause anaemia.

• However, SMCO is probably not the primary haemolytic agent.

 Cont.....
• It is metabolized in the rumen, producing dimethyl disulfide.
• Dimethyl disulphide attacks the red cell membrane.
• It is inactivated by reacting with reduced glutathione (GSH), producing
methylmercaptan.
• The toxic principle in onions is n-propyl disulfide and SMCO, cause RBC
hemolysis and Heinz-Ehrlich bodies & reduced by the glutathione peroxidase
system.
• Garlic contains S-allylcysteine sulfoxide, which is metabolized to allyl
disulfide oxide.
• The cholesterol lowering properties of garlic may be due to reaction of
disulfide group with sulfydryl group of CoA, leads to inhibition of lipid
synthesis.
 Cont.....

iii. Coumarin glycosides:

 Found in sweet clover (Melilotus spp.) as melilotoside.
 Coumarin is converted by mould growth to dicoumarol an antagonist of
vitamin K.
 Sweet clover poisoning, caused by feeding mouldy sweet clover hay, is
therefore an induced vitamin K deficiency.
iv. Steroid and Triterpenoid glycosides:
a) Cardiac glycosides:
• Best known CG is digitonin, contained in foxgloves (digitalis spp.).
• Physiologically, they are potent stimulators of heart rate & are used
medicinally.
 Cont.....
b) Saponin:
 Saponins are glycosides containing a polycyclic aglycone moiety of either
C27 steroid or C30 triterpenoid (collectively termed as sapogenins) attached
to a carbohydrate.
 They are widely distributed in the plant kingdom.
 Saponins are characterised by a bitter taste and foaming properties.
 Erythrocytes lyses in saponin solution and so, these compounds are toxic
when injected intravenously.
 In non-ruminants (chicks and pigs), retardation of growth rate, reduction in
feed intake occurs & in ruminants, implicated in causing bloat.
 The adverse effects of saponins can be overcome by repeated washing with
water which makes the feed more palatable by reducing the bitterness.
 Cont.....

v. Vicine:
• Vicine is a glycoside in Fava beans (Vicia faba).
• It causes haemolytic anaemia (favism) in people who have a genetic
deficiency of glucose-6-PO4-dehydrogenase activity in their RBC.
• Fava beans are being utilized as a protein supplement for livestock.

vi. Isoflavones:
• Which are called phytoestrogens, contain a flavones nucleus (ex- genistein,
formononetin & coumestrol).
• It cause reproduction problems in ruminant especially sheep.
3. Proteins:
• Several important inhibitors in plants are proteins.
• In some cases, effect of these are to inhibit the utilization of other proteins
by animals.
i. Protease (Trypsin) and Amylase Inhibitor:
 Inhibitors of enzymes, such as trypsin, chymotrypsin, carboxpeptidases,
elastase appear in many food products (legumes, cereals, potatoes etc.).
 Adverse effects following short- and long-term ingestion of raw soybean
meal (the richest source of dietary trypsin inhibitors) by mammals & birds
on protein utilization & growth, attributed to presence of trypsin inhibitors.
 Cont.....
Protease inhibitors fall into 2 main categories:
1. Kunitz inhibitor: MW- 21.5 kilodalton with 2 disulfide bridges and possess
specificity mainly against trypsin.
2. Bowman-Birk inhibitor: MW- 8 kilodalton with a high proportion of disulfide
bonds & capability of inhibiting chymotrypsin & trypsin at independent
binding sites.
 Levels of trypsin inhibitors (mainly as the Kunitz trypsin inhibitor) in
soybeans have been reported to vary from 17-48 mg/g sample or from 37-
123 mg/g protein.
 Protease inhibitors can be inactivated by the heat-processing method, such
as extrusion, IR, micronizing, autoclaving, steam processing, or flaking.
 Cont.....

Mode of action of trypsin inhibitors:

 Raw soybean feeding cause an enlargement of the pancreas (hypertrophy),
i.e. an increase in the size of acinar cells of pancreas.
 The pancreatic enzymes (trypsin and chymotrypsin) are rich in sulfur-
containing amino acids.
 Therefore, hyperactive pancreas would divert these Sulfur AA from the
synthesis of body tissue protein to the synthesis of these enzymes, which
are subsequently lost in the faeces.
 When the level of active trypsin in the gut is depressed due to the presence
of the inhibitor, the pancreas would respond in a compensatory fashion by
producing more enzymes.
 Cont.....

 The mediating agent between trypsin & pancreas has been reported to be

the hormone cholecystokinin (CCK), is released from jejunal endocrine cells

when level of trypsin in small intestine becomes depleted.

 Protein and/or amino acid digestibility have been reported to be negatively

affected in animal by high levels of dietary trypsin inhibitors.

ii. Hemagglutinins (lectins):
 Hemagglutinins, are proteins which agglutinate red blood cells.
 Soyabean lectin strongly binds to mannose of RBC & cause agglutination.
 The highest concentrations of lectins are found in seeds but, in the leaves,
their concentration is low due to translocation.
 Lectins may bind to the carbohydrate moieties of cells of the intestinal wall
& cause a non-specific interference with nutrient absorption.
 Robin, a lectin from Robinia pseudoacacia, has been reported to cause
symptoms of anorexia, weakness and posterior paralysis in cattle.
 Ricin, castor bean (Ricinus communis) seed press cake, and foliage are
poisonous and not used as a livestock feed but the oil is non toxic.
iii. Enzymes:

 Thiaminase, found in bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum) and certain fish.

 Enzyme cleaves the thiamine and inactivating it & causes thiamine

deficiency (Chastek’s paralysis).

 Other enzymes in feeds which produce deleterious effects in livestock

includes Lipoxidases in soybean & alfalfa, which degrade fat soluble vitamin.
4. Amino Acids and Amino Acid Derivatives

(a) Mimosine:
 Toxic amino acid
 A non-protein amino acid structurally similar to tyrosine, occurs in
Leucaena leucocephala forage plant.
 Concentration of mimosine in the leaf is about 2–6%, varies with seasons &
maturity.
 In non-ruminant animals, mimosine causes poor growth, alopecia (loss of
hair), eye cataracts & reproductive problems.
 Levels of Leucaena meal above 5–10% of the diet for swine, poultry and
rabbits result in poor animal performance.
 Cont.....
 MoA of mimosine is not clear but it may act as an amino acid antagonist or
may complex with pyridoxal phosphate, leading to disruption of catalytical
action of trans-aminases, or may complex with zinc metal.
 Toxicity symptom in ruminants are poor growth, loss of hair & wool, swollen
hooves, lameness, mouth & oesophageal lesions, depressed serum
thyroxine level & goitre.
 These symptoms may be due to mimosine toxicity & metabolite of mimosine
in the i.e. 3, 4 -dihydroxypyridine (DHP).

(b) Avidin:
 Glycoprotein in egg albumin, which is an antagonist of B vitamin Biotin.
 Raw eggs can be used to induce biotin deficiency in experimental animals.
 Cont.....

5. Carbohydrates:

 Few toxicity problems arises due to carbohydrate

 Xylose (hexose sugar)- cause decrease growth & cataracts in pigs & poultry.

 Raffinose are not digested in small intestine, hence promote bacterial growth

in the hind gut (flatulence factors in beans).

 Beta- glucans in barley cause nutritional problems in poultry.

 Cont.....

6. Lipids:

 Several fatty acids are toxic such as;

 Erucic acid in rape seed.

 Cyclopropenoid fatty acid- such as sterculic & malvalic acids in

cottonseed, have toxic properties & cause pink albumins to develop in

stored eggs.

 Trans fatty acid may have carcinogenic effect in human.

 Cont.....

7. Metal binding substances:

i. Oxalates:

 Chelating agent which chelates Ca very effectively.

 Plants with a high oxalate content may produce acute metabolic Ca

deficiency (hypocalcemia) in livestock.

 Oxalic acid converted to Ca-oxalate.

 Cont.....

ii. Phytates:
 Phytic acid in cereal grains & soyabean meal causes reduced mineral
availability.
 Organic P (phytin P) is of low availability to non-ruminant animals.
 Phytate is synthesized in plants by successive phosphorylation of inositol.
 Breakdown of phytate involves successive dephosphorylation by phytases
present in plants, microorganisms & certain animal tissues.
 Phytase supplementation improves the availability of minerals & digestibility
of proteins and ME.
 Cont.....

8. Resins:

 Soluble in organic solvents, insoluble in water, and do not contain nitrogen.

 Examples are cicutoxin, a poisonous principle of Cicuta spp. (water

hemlock).

 It is one of the most spectacular known poisons- acting directly on the CNS

to produce violent convulsion.

9. Phenolic compounds: Contain an aromatic ring with one or more hydroxyl groups.
i. Gossypol:
 Gossypol is a phenolic compound found in pigment glands of cotton seed (Gossypium
spp.).
 The main concern from a toxicological point of view is with free gossypol.
 The bound gossypol is physiologically inactive, but because it is bound to protein and
particularly lysine, so, it reduces the biological value of the protein.
 The physiological effects of free gossypol- olive green yolks in hen’s eggs, depress
appetite & growth, ascites & tissue edema, cardiac lesions & male infertility may
happens.
 Gossypol form complex with iron and cause iron deficiency in livestock.
 Supplement iron source as ferrous sulphate, when fed with CSK to livestock.
 Cont.....

ii. Tannins:
 Tannin have the ability to precipitate protein by forming hydrogen bonding,
which contributing to the stability of the protein-tannin complex.
 Mainly there are two types of tannins- Condensed & Hydrolysable tannin.
 Condensed tannin are not readily hydrolysed and have complex structure
(formed from the condensation of flavanols such as catechin and
epicatechin).
 Hydrolysable tannins can readly hydrolysed by hot mineral acid to yield the
sugar core.
 HT are astringent and adversely affect feed intake.
 Cont.....

 Low to moderate concentrations of Condensed tannin precipitate soluble

plant proteins & thus protect them against degradation in the rumen, but if
the proteins are too firmly bound to the tannins they are not digested in the
small intestine.
 By protecting proteins from hydrolysis in the rumen, they increase amino
acid absorption from the small intestine.
 They also modify gas production in the rumen, thereby reducing the danger
of bloat & possibly reducing methane production.
 Condensed tannins are also claimed to restrict the growth of gut parasites.
10. Mycotoxins:
 Metabolites of fungi (molds) is toxic to animals.
 Toxigenic species within the three dominant genera as Aspergillus, Penicillium and
Fusarium, occupy a wide range of habitats.
 Most common chronic effects in livestock are decreased growth rate & feed intake.
 Subclinical effects occurring in the liver, kidneys, GIT may be responsible.
 Diagnosis of mycotoxicoses is generally impossible from clinical signs or post-
mortem examination or residues in tissues.
 Some toxic effects are secondary, for aflatoxin B1 and T2 toxin which interfere with
the immune system, increasing the susceptibility to infectious diseases.
 Acute death in poultry (Turkey X-disease), liver cancer, lupinosis, sweet clover
poisoning, facial eczema of sheep, ryegrass staggers & ergotism.
11. Other toxins:
i. Plant Carcinogens:
 Carcinogenic effects in livestock may occurs due to consumption of a poisonous
plant
 Bladder and intestinal cancer in cattle consuming braken fern.
 Pyrolizidine alkaloids have carcinogenic properties.

ii. Trimethylamine oxide & formaldehyde:

 Occurs in certain types of marine fish & impair iron absorption when the fish are
used in the diet of animals.
 Iron deficiency signs such as reduced growth, anemia & loss of hair pigmentation
(achromotrichia) are observed.
 Cont.....
iii. Nitrates:
 Nitrate toxicity in ruminant is also known as “Oat hay poisoning”.
 Large amounts of nitrate present in green oats & heavy dressings of nitrogenous
fertilizers may enhance its concentration.
 Nitrate per se is relatively non-toxic to animals.
 Toxic effect in ruminants is caused by the reduction of nitrate to nitrite in the rumen.
 Nitrite, oxidises the ferrous iron of haemoglobin to the ferric state, producing a brown
pigment- methaemoglobin (incapable of transporting oxygen to the body tissues).
 Toxic signs include trembling, staggering, rapid respiration and death.
 Non-ruminants can tolerate nitrate but ruminants do not because the rumen bacteria
convert nitrate to nitrite.
 Cont.....

 As reported, toxicity may occur in animals, grazing herbage containing more than 0.7
g nitrate-N/kg DM (2.8 g NO3), although the lethal conc. is much higher than this.
 Acute nitrate toxicity is treated with I/v methylene blue solution (2 to 4 mg/kg to 15
mg/kg BW i/v in 1% solution) or ascorbic acid (reducing agents) which accept
electrons for NADPH reductase in blood & accelerate the reconversion of
methaemoglobin to functional haemoglobin.
 Oral dose of mineral oil (1 lit. For adult cattle) or 500 g sodium sulphate in saline drip
per cattle as supportive therapy.
Classification of natural toxicants by their occurrence in feeds:
Feedstuffs Toxicants
Grains
All Phytates, Mycotoxins
Rye, Triticale Trypsin inhibitors, Ergot
Milo Tannins
Tubers
Potato Solanum alkaloids
Cassava Cyanogenic glycosides
Protein supplements
Soybean Trypsin inhibitors, Lectins, Goiterogens, Saponins, Phytates,
Mycotoxins.
Cottonseed Gossypol, Tannin, Cyclopropnoid fatty acid, Mycotoxin
 Cont.....
Feedstuffs Toxicants
Rapeseed / Mustard oil cake Glucosinolates, Tannins, Erucic acid, Sinapine
Linseed meal Linamarin, Linatine
Fava beans Tripsin inhibitors, Vicine, Lectins
Forages
Legumes:
Alfalfa Saponins, Phytoestrogens, bloating agents
Red clover Slaframine, Phytoestrogens, bloating agents
Sweet clover Coumarin
Leucaena spp. Mimosine
Grasses:
Tropical grass, Paddy straw Oxalates
Forage Brassicas Brassica anemia factor
Management of Toxicosis:
The management plan for toxicologic emergencies, as follows:
 Institute the necessary emergency and supportive therapy to keep the
animal alive.
 Establish a tentative clinical diagnosis on which to base therapy.
 Institute the appropriate remedial and antidotal procedures.
 Identify the toxic agent as rapidly as possible.
 Determine the source of the toxin.
 Counsel the livestock owner on the hazards of the implicated toxicant, &
provide instruction for the avoidance of the problem in the future.
Common adulterants in feed and fodder:
 Adulterant can be defined as intentional admixture of a pure substances with some low
quality substances for earning more profit.
 Feed adulterant can be checked in lab. By different methods: Chemical analysis, Bioassay
assessment (less common method) & Feed microscopy
Feed ingredients Adulterants
Groundnut cake GNC husk, urea, UNCF cakes
Mustard cake Argimona maxicana seed, urea, UNCF cake
Soyabean meal Urea, hulls
DORB, Wheat bran Ground rice hulls, saw dust
Fish meal Common salt, urea
Mineral mixture Common salt, marble powder, sand, lime stone
Molassses Water
MBM Leather meal, blood meal, sand
DCP Calcite powder, rock phosphate
Discussions……………….…………..

Questions, if any…………………??

THANKS

31-10-2020 Kaushalendra Kumar, BVC, BASU, Patna 14