Mature male albino rats (ca. 300 g body mass) received 10 diets with a varying lysine content (1.6 to 8.4 g/16 g N). In one partial test the animals were fed ad libitum and in another partial test they were kept in the state of maintenance by limiting the amount of the diet. After 7 feeding days the catabolisation of 14C-lysine into 14CO2 was measured and after 8 feeding days the 15N-excretion in urine after 15N-lysine doses was ascertained. Based on these characteristics typical of metabolism, which show increased catabolisation of the amino acid after the lysine requirement was met, the lysine requirement of a mature rat was determined as 3.5 to 4.0 g/16 g N in the diet. In conclusion, this shows that the lysine requirement in the state of maintenenace and of mature animals is considerably lower than during the period of growth.

Over a period of 7 days, 38 experimental rats were fed a casein diet with a supplementation of 6.6 mg 15N-excess (15N') in the form of ammonium acetate. From the 5th experimental day, groups of 4 or 5 rats each were fed, over 5 days, different protein carriers to meet the meintenance requirement (115 kcal/kg body weight 0.75). The 15N-excretion via the urine, in terms of % of N absorbed from the food protein, served as yardstick of protein quality under maintenance conditions. The least 15N-excretion rates were reciprocally relativated for this maximum value (reciprocal 15N excretion biological value). The least 15N-excretion values from the 2nd to the 5th experimental days allowed to establish the following order for protein quality under maintenance conditions: fish meal, casein, wheat, whole egg, soybean (assayprotein), yeast peas, gelatin. The very good quality of the wheat protein for the maintenance state is seen in relation with the high content of glutamic acid (33.5 g/16 g N) and aspartic acid (5.7 g/16 gN). The found lysine content of the wheat protein (3.1 g/16 g N) proved sufficient for maintenance conditions.

Four male castrated pigs (55-65 kg) either received a wheat--fish meal diet (1 and 2) or a wheat--horse bean diet (3 and 4) without straw meal supplement (1 and 3) or with a supplement of 20% DM partly hydrolysed straw meal to the DM of the ration (2 and 4). In order to investigate whether a 15N-labelling of the pigs is also possible with a protein excess in the ration, the animals 1 and 2 received 24.8 g and the animals 3 and 4 = 11.6 g crude protein/kg0,75 live weight. During a 10-day 15N-labelling 385 mg 15N-excess (15N') per kg0,75 were applied in a mixture of ammonia acetate and ammonia chloride in the feed. During the period of 15N-labelling the following quotas of the applied 15N-amount were incorporated: 1 = 10.2%, 2 = 7.2%, 3 = 18.7%, 4 = 14.4%. 15N-excretion in both TCA fractions of faeces showed a highly significant positive correlation to the increasing content of crude fibre in the 4 diets. The immediate 15N-incorporation into the TCA-precipitable fraction of faeces (from the 2nd of the beginning of the 15N-application onwards) proves that 15N enters the large intestine endogenously (probably as 15N-urea) and serves bacterial protein synthesis. Three days after the last 15N-application the pigs were killed. The following values of atom-% 15N' could be determined in the TCA-precipitable blood plasma and in the TCA-precipitable fraction of the liver: 1 = 0.18 and 0.19 resp., 2 = 0.22 and 0.27 resp., 3 = 0.22 and 0.23 resp. and 4 = 0.24 and 0.26 resp. The other examined organs and tissues showed smaller differences between the test animals. The following atom-% 15N' were measured in the TCA-precipitable fractions on an average of the 4 test pigs: kidney = 0.20, pancreas = 0.18, intestinal wall tissue, duodenum = 0.18, jejunum (beginning) = 0.17, jejunum (end) = 0.15, ileum = 0.15, caecum = 0.16, colon (beginning) = 0.15, colon (middle) = 0.14, colon (end) = 0.13, stomach (cardia) = 0.11, stomach (fundus) = 0.12, spleen = 0.13, heart = 0.12, skin = 0.07 and skeleton muscles = 0.06. The results show that the 15N-labelling of tissues and organs of pigs is also possible at a high level of protein supply by means of an oral application of 15N ammonia salts.

No abstract

2 experimental cows received isobutylidenedi urea added to a natural diet in amounts of 175 g (I) and 730 g (II) per day for a period of several weeks before the trial was started. On the 1st day of experiment the morning dose was labelled with 5.05 g of excess 15N. 8 hrs after the beginning of the trial of 15N level in the TCE soluble portion of blood plasma (TCE=trichloroacetic acid) increased and remained at an elevated level until the 36th hour of experiment. Similarly, the values for maximum urinary 15N concentrations were maintained for a prolonged period of time. Isobutylidenedi urea was excreted with the urine in rates related to its solubility. Only small percentages of the 15N intake were excreted in the TCE soluble portion of the milk (cow I: 0.03%; cow II: 0.05%). The 15N-labelling of milk protein provides evidence for the fact that nitrogen from IBDU is utilized for the synthesis of milk in the cows. The amount of urea in milk averaged 400 mg per litre. None of the milk samples tested contained IBDU.