Abstract
Four cannulated Holstein steers (264±5 kg) were used in a 4×4 Latin square design to evaluate the influence of feeding different levels (0, 10, 20, or 30 g/steer/d) of live yeast (LY) on microbial protein synthesis and characteristics of digestion of the finishing diet. The LY contained 5.5×109 CFU/g. Ruminal pH was not affected by LY supplementation. LY level decreased linearly duodenal flow of ruminal digestion of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) but did not affect duodenal flow of feed N, nonammonia N, or microbial N. LY supplementation did not affect ruminal digestion of organic matter (OM), N, microbial efficiency, or N efficiency but linearly increased ruminal digestion of NDF. Total tract digestion of OM, NDF, and digestible energy improved linearly as LY level supplementation increased. Supplemental LY improves NDF and OM digestion enough to improve the DE of the diet, and the level of supplementation affects the magnitude of the responses.