Studies on Arginine Deficiency in Chicks

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Abstract
Two experiments were conducted with chicks fed a purified casein diet low in arginine, to determine the growth-promoting effect of various levels of arginine, glycocyamine, betaine, choline and methionine and certain combinations of these compounds. A growth response was obtained from betaine at all levels of dietary arginine. This response was greatest at the lower levels of arginine. Glycocyamine produced a response only at the lower levels of arginine and a further growth response was obtained with the addition of betaine. Creatine gave a growth response only in the absence of supplementary arginine. A response was obtained from the highest level of choline tested and from an intermediate level of methionine. The differences in arginine requirement observed in these experiments and experiments from other laboratories are compared on the basis of arginine required to produce a gram of gain. The significance of this type of comparison is discussed.