Life Process: Digestion in Ruminants

 

The plant cell as you know have a stop cell wall made of cellulose. Cellulose is a polysaccharide made of several glucose molecules the hobbyhorse animals eat plant food they need organs or mechanisms in their digestive systems, which can digest \ cellulose, the cellulose is broken down into simple glucose molecules by an enzyme called cellulase. When animals eat grass their digestive system does not produce cellulase, for that matter it is not produced in most animals, only some bacteria and some protozoans flagellate produced annually. Some herbivorous animals use these bacteria or protozoans to digest cellulose. The teeth of these animals are also modified, they have no cannons the incisors are well developed and the molars and premolars are flat. These teeth are very useful in mastication or chewing of food must have seen a cow or a buffalo eating grass these animals swallow grass without chewing, after swallowing good amount of grass. They bring back the food from the digestive canal through the mouth and chew it leisurely this process is called rumination, and these animals are referred as ruminants. The food is completely chewed and is mixed with saliva that it is different from other animals. The stomach is large and has four chambers they are rumen, reticulum, omasum and abomasum. 

The rumen is the largest chamber and cellulase is produced here by a large number of microorganisms, food that is swallowed enters the rumen and it is partially digested into a paste called cup. The partially digested food is brought back to the mouth mixed with large amount of saliva and chewed thoroughly. This food again enters the rumen and digestion continues for some time cellulase and other enzymes act on cellulose. Food now send to the second chamber the reticulum enzyme produced by bacteria continue digestion in Greta column the food is almost digested here, the fully digested food along with bacteria now enters the third chamber omasum. Absorption of the digested food begins in this chamber.

Where the water and bicarbonate present in the food is absorbed, the food now becomes concentrated and is sent into the fourth chamber the abomasum. This chamber is considered as the true stomach as the gland secrete acid, this acid kills bacteria and denatures the structure of proteins. The food containing the products of digestion enters the intestine, in the intestines all the nutrients are absorbed. It is not only digestion but also the products of digestion and absorption which are different in ruminants glucose formed by the digestion of cellulose it's fermented by microorganisms into two fatty acids, the fatty acids are propionic and glutatic acid. Glucose is thus not supplied to the cells of ruminants the bacteria obtain energy for their vital activities during fermentation saliva contains bicarbonate. Bicarbonate neutralizes the acid and produces large amounts of carbon dioxide. The microorganism use amino acids to produce proteins. The amino acids are used by microorganisms and not by the animal. The animal uses the protein produced by the microorganism and not the protein in the food from where does the animal get protein. When microorganisms enter abomasum along with food they are killed by the acid in abomasum. The animal absorbs the proteins present in the microorganisms and not that present in the food. Animal produces energy from the fatty acid. During the process of digestion gases like hydrogen methane and carbon dioxide are produced. These gases are expelled from the mouth. There is a symbiotic relationship between the ruminants and microorganisms. The animal supplies cellulose for microorganisms to obtain energy, the fatty acids produced by microorganisms are used by the ruminant for energy production. Animal supplies proteins to microorganisms, the microorganisms in turn uses the amino acids to produce proteins, the proteins produced by the microorganism are used by the ruminant thus the microorganism and the animals are benefitted in a symbiotic relationship. Rabbit is herbivorous and eat grass, it cannot digest cellulose. The fecal matter released by the rabbit contains partially digested cellulose, this fecal matter is again consumed by the rabbit, thus two types of fecal matter are produced by the rabbit, we should note that the appendix in rabbit is useful in digesting. In man cellulose cannot be digested however it increases the weight of food for it to move smoothly in the intestine.