Valor nutricional de la semilla de Mucuna spp. como complemento dietario en animales no rumiantes y rumiantes. Revisión

Adequate design of diets to animal health and productivity is essential in livestock industry. For the above, commonly are use bulky ingredients (fibrous sources) combined with a concentrates ingredients as cereals (energy sources), legumes (protein sources) and mineral concentrates. Mucuna spp. is a tropical legume in which its nutrients characteristics have been underutilized by livestock industry. Mucuna seed have an important nutritional characteristics as feedstuff: 1) Crude protein and energy concentration (dry matter basis) of 20 to 30 % and 15.7 to 24.7 MJ kg-1, respectively; 2) Presence of unsaturated fatty acids; 3) Similar concentration of anti-nutrient factors than other legumes, within which L-3,4 dihidroxiphenilalanine (L-DOPA,) can be easy reduced until no adverse effects on animal growth are noted. In addition, mucuna seed is a feedstuff economically advantageous, since is commonly considered as agriculture waste. The aim of this paper is to present a review of available information about the presence and concentration of nutritional compounds in the seed of Mucuna spp. with high potential for livestock industry.