Protein quality studies on rats fed on cassava-root meal enriched with Cephalosporium eichhorniae 152 or with conventional plant-protein supplements

Using rats, the protein content and quality of an enriched cassava-root meal (CRM) biomass, produced by growing Cephalosporium eichhorniae 152 on a CRM medium in a submerged fermentation, was compared with that of soya-bean meal (SBM) and cotton-seed cake (CSC) in rats. The contents of crude protein of these feeds were 38.8, 52.0 and 42.3% on DM basis, respectively, and there were differences in their amino acid composition. The nitrogen digestibility of the enriched CRM-biomass and of CSC was lower than that of SBM. The biological value of the enriched CRM-biomass was equal to that of CSC, but lower than that of SBM. Net protein-utilization estimates for the enriched CRM-biomass and for CSC were similar, whereas that for SEM was greater. Enriching CRM by C. eichhorniae 152 seems to be a way of increasing protein supply for livestock production.