BIOB34H3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 22: Hindgut Fermentation, Foregut Fermentation, Short-Chain Fatty Acid
Document Summary
Foregut fermenters harbors microbes used for digestion in the stomachs (cows are the most common. Since herbivores primarily eat plants (which contain a lot of cellulose), they"re not able to digest all the cellulose properly since it is tightly packed together. Since it"s tightly packed together, the enzyme, cellulase, isn"t fully capable of breaking the internal bonds of cellulose, make it hard to break it apart. So, this is why most herbivores go through this phase called foregut fermentation. Rumen and reticulum is essentially where fermentation occurs. Cellulase tries to break cellulose down, thus forming the basic monosaccharide glucose. The animal can absorb them since their digestive tract is made of lipophilic compounds. Since the animals have oxygen (they can get from breathing) they can further metabolize the acids in order to get energy from them. B-vitamins and essential amino acids are water soluble compounds that require specific transporters to help them be absorbed.
