RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN PLASMA, LIVER AND DIETARY TOCOPHEROL IN CALVES, LAMBS AND PIGS

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Abstract
While considerable information describing the biochemical, histological, and physiological changes occurring in tocopherol deficiency of farm animals and poultry has appeared in the literature (Miner, 1949; Blaxter and Brown, 1952; Ames, 1956), insufficient data were available to quantitatively relate these changes to tocopherol intake or tocopherol status. Recently, the feasibility of using the relation of tocopherol tissue concentrations to tocopherol dosage in estimating availability of tocopherol from various sources has been demonstrated in the rat by Bolliger and Bolliger-Quaife (1955), and in the chick by Bunnell (1955b), and suggested by the data of Bratzler et al. 1950 in swine and Mason (1942) in rats. In addition, the possibility of relating plasma tocopherol concentration to tissue tocopherol concentration as an estimate of tocopherol status of the animal was indicated by the data of Bolliger and Bolliger-Quaife (1955), Bunnell et al. 1956, and Bratzler et al. 1950. Therefore, the primary objectives of this study were to explore possible relationships of plasma and liver tocopherol concentrations to tocopherol intake and secondarily to determine other possible relationships of biochemical and physiological changes associated with the level of dietary tocopherol using calves, lambs, and pigs as the experimental animals.