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Alkaloids as anti-quality factors in plants on western U.S. rangelands
Author
Pfister, J. A.Panter, K. E.
Gardner, D. R.
Stegelmeier, B. L.
Ralphs, M. H.
Molyneux, R. J.
Lee, S. T.
Issue Date
2001-07-01Keywords
bindingmorbidity
physiology
metabolism
excretion
antinutritional factors
alkaloids
toxicity
phytotoxins
mortality
stocking rate
selective grazing
species differences
rotational grazing
feed supplements
biomass production
rumen fermentation
rangelands
pasture plants
literature reviews
chemical constituents of plants
poisonous plants
plant toxins
forage quality
diet selection
grazing management
Metadata
Show full item recordCitation
Pfister, J. A., Panter, K. E., Gardner, D. R., Stegelmeier, B. L., Ralphs, M. H., Molyneux, R. J., & Lee, S. T. (2001). Alkaloids as anti-quality factors in plants on western US rangelands. Journal of Range Management, 54(4), 447-461.Publisher
Society for Range ManagementJournal
Journal of Range ManagementAdditional Links
https://rangelands.org/Abstract
Alkaloids constitute the largest class of plant secondary compounds, occurring in 20 to 30% of perennial herbaceous species in North America. Alkaloid-containing plants are of interest, first because alkaloids often have pronounced physiological reactions when ingested by livestock, and second because alkaloids have distinctive taste characteristics. Thus, alkaloids may kill, injure, or reduce productivity of livestock, and have the potential to directly or indirectly alter diet selection. We review 7 major categories of toxic alkaloids, including pyrrolizidine (e.g., Senecio), quinolizidine (e.g., Lupinus), indolizidine (e.g., Astragalus), diterpenoid (e.g., Delphinium), piperidine (e.g., Conium), pyridine (e.g., Nicotiana), and steroidal (Veratrum-type) alkaloids. Clinically, effects on animal production vary from minimal feed refusal to abortion, birth defects, wasting diseases, agalactia, and death. There are marked species differences in reactions to alkaloids. This has been attributed to rumen metabolism, alkaloid absorption, metabolism, excretion or directly related to their affinity to target tissues such as binding at receptor sites. In spite of alkaloids reputed bitter taste to livestock, some alkaloid-containing plant genera (e.g., Delphinium, Veratrum, Astragalus, Oxytropis, and Lupinus) are often readily ingested by livestock. Management schemes to prevent losses are usually based on recognizing the particular toxic plant, knowing the mechanism of toxicity, and understanding the temporal dynamics of plant alkaloid concentration and consumption by livestock. Once these aforementioned aspects are understood, losses may be reduced by maintaining optimal forage conditions, adjusting grazing pressure and timing of grazing, aversive conditioning, strategic supplementation, changing livestock species, and herbicidal control.Type
textArticle
Language
enISSN
0022-409Xae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.2307/4003116