Twenty-eight commercial hybrid gilts with a high genetic capacity for lean gain were used to determine the relationships between energy intake and tissue deposition and body composition between 20 and 45 kg BW. Four pigs were killed at 20 kg to determine body composition at the beginning of the experiment. The other 24 gilts received one of six intake levels (1.7, 2.2, 2.7, 3.2, and 3.7 times maintenance [M], and ad libitum) ranging from 11.3 to 27.2 MJ of DE/d. At 45 kg BW, the gilts were killed and dissected into carcass and organ fractions. Carcasses of pigs at 2.2 and 3.7 x M were dissected into lean and other carcass parts. Daily gain increased linearly (P < .001) from 371 to 1,075 g/d. Gain/feed increased (P < .01) from 500 to 600 g/kg. Deposition rates of protein and lipid increased linearly (P < .001) from 75 to 172 g/d and from 28 to 193 g/d, respectively. The ratio between lipid and protein deposition increased (P < .001) from .3 to 1.1. The relative organ mass increased (P < .001) with increasing energy intake, whereas the body lean percentage decreased (P < .01) from 53.9% at 2.2 x M to 47.4% at 3.7 x M. In the carcass and organs, protein content decreased (P < .01) and lipid content increased (P < .001) with increasing energy intake. Protein deposition increased with 5.77 g/MJ increase in DE intake, of which only approximately 40% was deposited in the lean tissue.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

We conducted two experiments with preruminant calves weighing 80 to 240 kg to study the long-term nutritional regulation of circulating IGF-I, thyroxine (T4), and triiodothyronine (T3). The two experiments were similar in design but were performed with calves of two live weight ranges: 80 to 160 kg (Exp. 1) and 160 to 240 kg (Exp. 2). In each experiment, 36 calves were allocated to one of 12 dietary treatments, which consisted of six protein intake levels at each of two energy intake levels. Digestible protein intakes ranged between .90 and 2.72 g N x BW(-.75) x d(-1) in Exp. 1 and between .54 and 2.22 g N x BW(-.75) x d(-1) in Exp. 2. The energy intake levels were kept constant on a protein-free basis; increased energy intakes were realized by increasing energy intake from fat and carbohydrates in a fixed ratio. The digestible protein-free energy intakes were 663 and 851 kJ x BW(-.75) x d(-1) in Exp. 1 and 564 and 752 kJ x BW(-.75) x d(-1) in Exp. 2. Blood samples were taken 5 to 6 h after feeding once every 14 d until the calves reached their target weight. In both experiments, plasma IGF-I and T4 concentrations increased with increasing protein intake (P < .01), but they were unaffected by protein-free energy intake (P > .10). In both experiments, plasma T3 levels were markedly higher at the high protein-free energy intake level (P < .01) and increased slightly with increasing protein intake in Exp. 1 (P = .19) and Exp. 2 (P < .01). Results of these experiments suggest the involvement of IGF-I in the response of protein deposition to increased protein intakes and the involvement of the active thyroid hormone T3 in the response of protein deposition to increased protein-free energy intakes.