Protein requirement and amino acid imbalance in quail

Abstract

1. Growing Japanese quail were fed on purified diets based either on dried egg albumen or casein supplemented with methionine. 2. At low protein concentration body mass, N-intake and N-growth requirement of chicks fed on diets containing casein were impaired compared to those fed on diets with egg albumen: in contrast at higher protein concentrations performance was better among those fed on diets with casein. 3. Increased protein requirement was observed among birds fed on diets containing casein compared with those given dried egg albumen. 4. One of the reasons for the increased requirement was attributed to amino acid imbalance in the casein.