The work was carried out to evaluate the microbial protein production determination by means of the urinary excretion of purine derivatives; to compare the microbial protein production by means of purine base methods and of the urinary excretion of purine derivatives; to determine the microbial protein production on the dry matter intake and percentage of neutral detergent fiber in the diet; and to establish the allantoin: uric acid ratio, in relation to the xanthine and hypoxanthine in the urine. Five experiments were carried out with steers fistulated in the rumen, abomasum and ileum, for simultaneous studies of intake, total and partial nutrient digestion and efficiency of microbial protein synthesis. An experimental 5 x 5 Latin square design, except for the experiment IV (4 x 4), was used. Data were grouped in all the experiments, the ones that involved crossbred animals (I, II and III) and Zebu animals (IV and V). For all grouped data, a completely randomized design was used in function of the dietary concentrate levels. From the total urine collected in 24 hours, the purine derivatives (allantoin, uric acid, xanthine and hypoxanthine) were analyzed to determine the microbial production. For all experiments urinary purine derivatives excretions, represented by the allantoin and the total purine, presented quadratic behavior on the dietary concentrate levels, according to the N mic flow behavior estimated by the urinary purine derivatives excretions, using purine N: total purine ratio of .116 and the estimated by the purine bases in the abomasum, reaching maximum values of 72.07 and 86.08 N mic/day for concentrate levels of 62.91and 63.60%, respectively. Allantoin: uric acid ratio was nearly to 98%, indicating that the xanthine and hypoxanthine concentration would be around 2%.
microbial nitrogen; purine in the urine; steers
