Because cultivation-based approaches to assess rumen microbiology assess only the minority of microbial groups and can miss opportunities to assess important functions, molecular-based approaches have flourished in microbial ecology and have been adapted to the rumen. Current approaches are described herein, specifically for a robust adaptation to nutrition studies or future opportunities. These included automated profiling techniques, density gradient gel electrophoresis, and future adaption of microarray or high-throughput sequencing technologies. Based on current knowledge, a more holistic approach is needed to describe various functional groups of microbes within the context of how they influence, and are influenced by, the whole consortium (combination of microbial groups). Such a perspective is applied to issues related to increasing fiber digestibility when feeding concentrate or unsaturated fats to high producing beef and dairy cattle. These same microbial populations should help to provide growth factors for fibrolytic bacteria while competing against the hyperammonia-producing bacteria such that there would be less need for excessive rumen-degraded protein as a safety factor. Moreover, these same dietary conditions influence the processes of biohydrogenation and methanogenesis. After accounting for population structures of bacteria, protozoa, methanogenic archaea, and even fungi, efforts to integrate molecular-based rumen microbial ecology with dietary conditions should allow us to better explain and therefore predict conditions that will improve feed efficiency and reduce environmental impact of ruminant production systems.
biohydrogenation; methanogenesis; rumen fiber digestibility; rumen microbial ecology