Concentrations of amino acids in plasma and whole blood in response to food deprivation and refeeding in healthy two-day-old foals.

This research examines how food deprivation and subsequent refeeding impact the concentrations of various amino acids in the plasma and whole blood of healthy two-day-old foals. It found that both processes significantly alter these concentrations, in ways similar to certain disease states in both foals and human children.

Methodology

• The researchers studied two groups of healthy two-day-old foals. One group of eight foals underwent ten hours of food deprivation, while another control group of eight foals were given free access to suckling.
• The concentrations of amino acids in plasma and whole blood were measured and compared between both groups before and after the period of food deprivation.
• After ten hours, the food-deprived foals were also allowed 15 minutes of free-access suckling, and the concentrations of amino acids in their plasma was again measured.

Findings

• The study discovered that food deprivation had a significant impact on the concentrations of 13 amino acids in the plasma of the deprived foals as compared to control foals.
• Specifically, the concentrations of three amino acids (alanine, glycine, and phenylalanine) in plasma increased, while those of seven others (asparagine, citrulline, histidine, ornithine, proline, tryptophan, and tyrosine) decreased during food deprivation.
• There were also significant differences in the concentrations of glycine and histidine between the plasma and whole blood of food-deprived versus control foals.
• Upon refeeding, responses for concentrations of all but two amino acids (cystine and taurine) in plasma were significantly different in the food-deprived foals, compared with controls.

Implications

• The researchers noted that the changes in amino acid concentrations during food deprivation and refeeding resemble those seen in disease states. This includes foals suffering from septicemia (blood poisoning) and children showing symptoms of grade 1 or 2 kwashiorkor, a form of malnutrition caused by protein deficiency.
• The altered response of food-deprived foals to refeeding may be due to an increased protein intake or changes in their physiologic state.
• This research, therefore, indicates that there is a strong relationship between food consumption (or the lack thereof) and the levels of amino acids in the blood.