Effect of dietary gossypol supplement on fermentation characteristics and bacterial diversity in the rumen of sheep.

The tolerance of ruminants to gossypol, a natural phenolic compound derived from the cotton plant, is greater than that of monogastric animals, partially because of the gossypol-degrading bacteria in the rumen of the ruminants. In this study, we aimed to examine the effect of gossypol supplementation on fermentation characteristics, bacterial α-diversity and community structure in the rumen fluid of sheep to analyse the change of bacterial in response to gossypol. 8 sheep with permanent fistula were randomly divided into 2 groups, a control and gossypol acetate supplementation groups.