Isolation of a diaminobutyric acid-degrading bacterium from the sheep rumen

Anti-nutritional factors such as non-protein amino acids (NPAAs) have been found in some plants. However, the utilization of these plants as animal feed is limited due to the presence of NPAA and neurotoxin such as diaminobutyric acid (DABA). A bacterium which was capable of degrading DABA was isolated from the sheep rumen. In vitro studies showed that the bacterium could use DABA as a nitrogen source and required a carbon source such as glucose for its growth. The degradation ranged from 3.2 to 83.5% depending on the levels of glucose and DABA in the medium and incubation periods.