AB Vista recently attended and sponsored the European Symposium on Poultry Nutrition at the Heriott-Watt University, Edinburgh. Dr. Bedford and Dr. Cowieson presented a paper entitiled 'Phytase and phytate interactions' which was recieved well by all the delegates.
Paper Abstract:
Despite several thousand scientific papers and a rapidly growing market the use of phytase and the importance of phytate in practical poultry nutrition remains an area of some confusion. Initially phytases were offered as a means to improve the digestible phosphorus concentration of monogastric rations by the stepwise removal of orthophosphate from the myo-inositol ring of phytate. However, it was gradually understood that the digestibility of other minerals (notably calcium), carbohydrates and amino acids were also variably influenced by the ingestion of phytase (and phytate). The mechanisms at work are not entirely clear but recent evidence suggests that phytate is an antinutrient, beyond its effect on digestible phosphorus and influences secretory and absorptive processes in the gut. In addition to a new appreciation for the effect of phytate and phytase on digestive physiology, a rapidly growing market has attracted a variety of new phytase technologies with various proteolytic and thermal stability and improved kinetics. With increasingly effective phytases available it is more important than ever that the full range of effects are accommodated in diet formulation to ensure that value is optimised and the risk of nutrient imbalances reduced.
For the full paper please access the Resource Centre