Biochemical Lesions Associated with Taurine Deficiency in the Cat

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Abstract
A 24-week experiment was undertaken to evaluate the essentiality of taurine for the young kitten fed a taurine-free crystalline amino acid diet containing required levels of both methionine and cystine. Kittens fed the taurine-free diet exhibited central retinal degeneration (CRD), but neither growth rate nor food intake was significantly depressed. Taurine concentrations in plasma, heart, liver, retina, lens, olfactory bulb and bile were markedly reduced in cats that received the taurine-free diet. Tissue concentrations of amino acids were also affected by taurine deficiency. Glycine and glutamine both increased in the retina, but only glutamine increased in the lens. Glutamic acid and glutamine increased in the heart. However, the concentrations of all amino acids measured, except histidine, increased in the olfactory bulb due to the fact that olfactory bulbs from taurine-deficient cats weighed only one-half that of the bulbs from taurine-adequate cats. The taurine concentration in queen's milk was determined to be 93.6 ±10.4 µmoles/100 ml, an amount three times that present in human milk. Copyright © 1979. American Society of Animal Science . Copyright 1979 by American Society of Animal Science.

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