Investigation of the encapsulating proteins obtained from the duckweed plant and turning them into rumen protected proteins

Duckweed is an aquatic plant rich in essential amino acids, providing nutrients that can be used in both human and animal nutrition worldwide. Duckweed is cultivated abroad, but it is found naturally in Turkey. While there are many varieties of this plant, the duckweed used here was obtained from in Lake Eğirdir by growing Lemna minor L. (SM) in artificial ponds. The resulting plants were first washed, shade-dried, and ground. The ground duckweed was diluted to allow for protein separation, and the pulp (SMPO) and separated protein (SMP) were dried separately. SM, SMP, and SMPO, available in powder form, were encapsulated using palm oil to obtain ESM, ESMP, and ESMPO. All obtained products were analyzed for DM, ASH, CP, OİL, ADF, and NDF. They were subjected to 24-hour in vitro gas digestion, and ME, NEL, and IVDMD values were calculated. All data were analyzed, graphed, and tabulated using jamovi. Crude protein analysis of untreated SM, SMP, and SMPO yielded 25.64, 43.14, and 18.46%, respectively. Adding bypass oil to the samples decreased all analysis values while only increasing the fat content. In vitro dry matter digestibility ME and NEL values calculated for the concentrate were observed to increase after encapsulation. Gas evolution was observed to be almost zero in samples coated with palm oil through encapsulation. The encapsulation process was also successful, demonstrating that protein properties were preserved in the rumen. The study on the preservation of high-quality protein sources in the rumen requires subsequent in vivo studies as well as the need for processing technology to reach industrial scale.