FREE SHIPPING over $40
OVER 10000 FIVE-STAR REVIEWS
5% OFF ALL SUBSCRIPTIONS
100% HAPPINESS GUARANTEE
Analyze Diet
0
The Journal of nutrition2007; 137(6 Suppl 2); 1626S-1641S; doi: 10.1093/jn/137.6.1626S

Nutritional consequences of interspecies differences in arginine and lysine metabolism.

Abstract: Differences in lysine and arginine requirements among various species such as omnivores (humans, pigs, rats, dogs), carnivores (cats), herbivores (rabbits, horses), ruminants (cattle), poultry, and fish, are covered in detail in this article. Although lysine is classified as an indispensable amino acid across species, the classification of arginine as either an indispensable or dispensable amino acid is more ambiguous because of differences among species in rates of de novo arginine synthesis. Because lysine is most often the limiting amino acid in the diet, its requirement has been extensively studied. By use of the ideal protein concept, the requirements of the other indispensable amino acids can be extrapolated from the lysine requirement. The successful use of this concept in pigs is compared with potential application of the ideal protein concept in humans. The current dietary arginine requirement varies widely among species, with ruminants, rabbits, and rats having relatively low requirements and carnivores, fish, and poultry having high requirements. Interspecies differences in metabolic arginine utilization and reasons for different rates of de novo arginine synthesis are reviewed in detail, as these are the primary determinants of the dietary arginine requirement. There is presently no dietary requirement for humans of any age, although this needs to be reassessed, particularly in neonates. A thorough understanding of the factors contributing to the lysine and arginine requirements in different species will be useful in our understanding of human amino acid requirements.
Get Full Text
Publication Date: 2007-05-22 PubMed ID: 17513439DOI: 10.1093/jn/137.6.1626SGoogle Scholar: Lookup
The Equine Research Bank provides access to a large database of publicly available scientific literature. Inclusion in the Research Bank does not imply endorsement of study methods or findings by Mad Barn.
LinkedInCopy
  • Journal Article
  • Research Support
  • Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

The research article discusses the differences in the need for and metabolism of lysine and arginine, two amino acids, across various animal species. It also highlights the need to reassess the dietary arginine requirement for humans, particularly neonates.

Understanding Arginine and Lysine

  • Arginine and lysine are types of amino acids. Amino acids are organic compounds that play a key role in the body for processes like building proteins and synthesizing hormones and neurotransmitters.
  • Among all species, lysine is classified as an indispensable amino acid, meaning it cannot be synthesized by the organism itself and must be obtained from the diet.
  • The case of arginine is a bit more complex as it can be classified either as indispensable or dispensable, depending on the species’ ability to synthesize it de novo, or from scratch.

Role of Lysine

  • Being the usually limiting amino acid in the diet, the requirement of lysine has been widely researched.
  • The so-called ideal protein concept allows the extrapolation of the requirements of other indispensable amino acids based on the lysine requirement. This concept is well-documented and applied in pigs.
  • Analogous application in humans of the ideal protein concept is discussed as potential future avenue for research.

Role and Requirement of Arginine

  • The dietary arginine requirement is widely variable among species. Those like ruminants, rabbits, and rats have a relatively low requirement, while carnivores, fish, and poultry require more.
  • Interspecies differences in the metabolic utilization of arginine and different rates of its de novo synthesis are major determinants of a species’ dietary requirement for arginine.
  • Currently, there are no distinct arginine dietary requirements for humans, regardless of age. However, the research paper proposes a reassessment of this, especially focusing on neonates (newborns), considering the critical role arginine plays in metabolic processes.

Implications of the Research

  • The research aims at establishing a deeper understanding of the factors contributing to the requirements of lysine and arginine in various species. Such knowledge could enhance our understanding of the human requirement for these amino acids.
  • The reassessment of arginine dietary requirements for humans, in particular for neonates, could bring new insights into their growth and development needs and potentially lead to updates in the nutritional guidelines for these age groups.

Cite This Article

APA
Ball RO, Urschel KL, Pencharz PB. (2007). Nutritional consequences of interspecies differences in arginine and lysine metabolism. J Nutr, 137(6 Suppl 2), 1626S-1641S. https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/137.6.1626S

Publication

The Journal of nutrition
ISSN: 0022-3166
NlmUniqueID: 0404243
Country: United States
Language: English
Volume: 137
Issue: 6 Suppl 2
Pages: 1626S-1641S

Researcher Affiliations

Ball, Ronald O
  • Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, and The Research Institute, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada M5G. ron.ball@ualberta.ca
Urschel, Kristine L
    Pencharz, Paul B

      MeSH Terms

      • Animals
      • Arginine / metabolism
      • Humans
      • Lysine / metabolism
      • Nutritional Requirements
      • Species Specificity

      Citations

      This article has been cited 39 times.
      1. Macelline SP, Chrystal PV, Inanan C, Toghyani M, Selle PH, Liu SY. The influence of dietary crude protein concentrations, grain types and arginine:lysine ratios on the performance of broiler chickens. Anim Nutr 2023 Sep;14:259-268.
        doi: 10.1016/j.aninu.2023.05.007pubmed: 37600840google scholar: lookup
      2. Yu CX, Zhang YR, Ren YF, Zhao Y, Song XX, Yang HL, Chen MJ. Composition and contents of fatty acids and amino acids in the mycelia of Lentinula edodes. Food Sci Nutr 2023 Jul;11(7):4038-4046.
        doi: 10.1002/fsn3.3392pubmed: 37457198google scholar: lookup
      3. Hong J, Clizer D, Cline P, Samuel R. Effects of branched-chain amino acids to lysine ratios in corn distillers dried grains with solubles containing diets on growth performance, plasma nitrogen profile, carcass traits, and economic analysis in growing-finishing pigs. Transl Anim Sci 2023 Jan;7(1):txad066.
        doi: 10.1093/tas/txad066pubmed: 37455942google scholar: lookup
      4. Brugaletta G, Laghi L, Zampiga M, Oliveri C, Indio V, Piscitelli R, Pignata S, Petracci M, De Cesare A, Sirri F. Metabolic and microbiota response to arginine supplementation and cyclic heat stress in broiler chickens. Front Physiol 2023;14:1155324.
        doi: 10.3389/fphys.2023.1155324pubmed: 37064901google scholar: lookup
      5. Mosayyeb Zadeh A, Mirghelenj SA, Daneshyar M, Eslami M, Karimi Torshizi MA, Zhandi M. Effects of dietary supplementation of tomato pomace (Solanum lycopersicum L.) and L-Arg on reproductive performance of aged male broiler breeders. Poult Sci 2023 May;102(5):102614.
        doi: 10.1016/j.psj.2023.102614pubmed: 36965255google scholar: lookup
      6. Brugaletta G, Zampiga M, Laghi L, Indio V, Oliveri C, De Cesare A, Sirri F. Feeding broiler chickens with arginine above recommended levels: effects on growth performance, metabolism, and intestinal microbiota. J Anim Sci Biotechnol 2023 Mar 3;14(1):33.
        doi: 10.1186/s40104-023-00839-ypubmed: 36864475google scholar: lookup
      7. Goodarzi P, Habibi M, Gorton MW, Walsh K, Tarkesh F, Fuhrig M, Pezeshki A. Dietary Isoleucine and Valine: Effects on Lipid Metabolism and Ureagenesis in Pigs Fed with Protein Restricted Diets. Metabolites 2023 Jan 5;13(1).
        doi: 10.3390/metabo13010089pubmed: 36677013google scholar: lookup
      8. Song W, Wu Z, Li W, Li Y, Yang H. Optimal dietary standardized ileal digestible lysine level for pigs during the grower, early and late finisher periods. BMC Vet Res 2022 Dec 23;18(1):447.
        doi: 10.1186/s12917-022-03557-1pubmed: 36564755google scholar: lookup
      9. Wang MM, Huang YY, Liu WB, Xiao K, Wang X, Guo HX, Zhang YL, Fan JW, Li XF, Jiang GZ. Interactive effects of dietary leucine and isoleucine affect amino acid profile and metabolism through AKT/TOR signaling pathways in blunt snout bream (Megalobrama amblycephala). Fish Physiol Biochem 2022 Dec 16;.
        doi: 10.1007/s10695-022-01161-6pubmed: 36525145google scholar: lookup
      10. Liu T, Wang X, Jia P, Liu C, Wei Y, Song Y, Li S, Liu L, Wang B, Shi H. Association between serum arginine levels and cancer risk: A community-based nested case-control study. Front Nutr 2022;9:1069113.
        doi: 10.3389/fnut.2022.1069113pubmed: 36466394google scholar: lookup
      11. Lisnahan CV, Nahak OR, Welsiliana W, Pardosi L. Effect of L-arginine and L-Lysine HCl ratio on growth performance and ileum morphology of native chickens aged 2-14 weeks. Vet World 2022 May;15(5):1365-1372.
        doi: 10.14202/vetworld.2022.1365-1372pubmed: 35765480google scholar: lookup
      12. de Lima MB, de Sousa MGBL, Minussi ART, de Carvalho LC, Veras AG, Malheiros EB, da Silva EP. Arginine requirement for egg production in Japanese quail. Poult Sci 2022 Jun;101(6):101841.
        doi: 10.1016/j.psj.2022.101841pubmed: 35462207google scholar: lookup
      13. Plata G, Baxter NT, Susanti D, Volland-Munson A, Gangaiah D, Nagireddy A, Mane SP, Balakuntla J, Hawkins TB, Kumar Mahajan A. Growth promotion and antibiotic induced metabolic shifts in the chicken gut microbiome. Commun Biol 2022 Apr 1;5(1):293.
        doi: 10.1038/s42003-022-03239-6pubmed: 35365748google scholar: lookup
      14. Wang Q, Xu Z, Ai Q. Arginine metabolism and its functions in growth, nutrient utilization, and immunonutrition of fish. Anim Nutr 2021 Sep;7(3):716-727.
        doi: 10.1016/j.aninu.2021.03.006pubmed: 34466676google scholar: lookup
      15. Konieczka P, Mikulski D, Ognik K, Juśkiewicz J, Zduńczyk Z, Jankowski J. Increased Dietary Inclusion Levels of Lysine Are More Effective than Arginine in Supporting the Functional Status of the Gut in Growing Turkeys. Animals (Basel) 2021 Aug 9;11(8).
        doi: 10.3390/ani11082351pubmed: 34438809google scholar: lookup
      16. Herring CM, Bazer FW, Wu G. Amino Acid Nutrition for Optimum Growth, Development, Reproduction, and Health of Zoo Animals. Adv Exp Med Biol 2021;1285:233-253.
        doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-54462-1_12pubmed: 33770410google scholar: lookup
      17. Si H, Liu H, Nan W, Li G, Li Z, Lou Y. Effects of Arginine Supplementation on Serum Metabolites and the Rumen Bacterial Community of Sika Deer (Cervus nippon). Front Vet Sci 2021;8:630686.
        doi: 10.3389/fvets.2021.630686pubmed: 33614769google scholar: lookup
      18. Lise CC, Marques C, Bonadimann FS, Pereira EA, Mitterer-Daltoé ML. Amino acid profile of food fishes with potential to diversify fish farming activity. J Food Sci Technol 2021 Jan;58(1):383-388.
        doi: 10.1007/s13197-020-04747-1pubmed: 33505083google scholar: lookup
      19. Castro FLS, Kim WK. Secondary Functions of Arginine and Sulfur Amino Acids in Poultry Health: Review. Animals (Basel) 2020 Nov 13;10(11).
        doi: 10.3390/ani10112106pubmed: 33202808google scholar: lookup
      20. Uyanga VA, Jiao H, Zhao J, Wang X, Lin H. Dietary L-citrulline supplementation modulates nitric oxide synthesis and anti-oxidant status of laying hens during summer season. J Anim Sci Biotechnol 2020;11:103.
        doi: 10.1186/s40104-020-00507-5pubmed: 33062264google scholar: lookup
      21. Borchel A, Verleih M, Kühn C, Rebl A, Goldammer T. Evolutionary expression differences of creatine synthesis-related genes: Implications for skeletal muscle metabolism in fish. Sci Rep 2019 Apr 1;9(1):5429.
        doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-41907-6pubmed: 30931999google scholar: lookup
      22. Gil-Solsona R, Nácher-Mestre J, Lacalle-Bergeron L, Sancho JV, Calduch-Giner JA, Hernández F, Pérez-Sánchez J. Untargeted metabolomics approach for unraveling robust biomarkers of nutritional status in fasted gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata). PeerJ 2017;5:e2920.
        doi: 10.7717/peerj.2920pubmed: 28168106google scholar: lookup
      23. Verri T, Barca A, Pisani P, Piccinni B, Storelli C, Romano A. Di- and tripeptide transport in vertebrates: the contribution of teleost fish models. J Comp Physiol B 2017 Apr;187(3):395-462.
        doi: 10.1007/s00360-016-1044-7pubmed: 27803975google scholar: lookup
      24. Zhang X, Song Z, Liu T, Guo L, Li X. De Novo Assembly and Comparative Transcriptome Analysis Provide Insight into Lysine Biosynthesis in Toona sinensis Roem. Int J Genomics 2016;2016:6735209.
        doi: 10.1155/2016/6735209pubmed: 27376077google scholar: lookup
      25. Chapman KA, Collado MS, Figler RA, Hoang SA, Armstrong AJ, Cui W, Purdy M, Simmers MB, Yazigi NA, Summar ML, Wamhoff BR, Dash A. Recapitulation of metabolic defects in a model of propionic acidemia using patient-derived primary hepatocytes. Mol Genet Metab 2016 Mar;117(3):355-362.
        doi: 10.1016/j.ymgme.2015.12.008pubmed: 26740382google scholar: lookup
      26. Bol S, Bunnik EM. Lysine supplementation is not effective for the prevention or treatment of feline herpesvirus 1 infection in cats: a systematic review. BMC Vet Res 2015 Nov 16;11:284.
        doi: 10.1186/s12917-015-0594-3pubmed: 26573523google scholar: lookup
      27. Marini JC, Agarwal U, Didelija IC. Dietary arginine requirements for growth are dependent on the rate of citrulline production in mice. J Nutr 2015 Jun;145(6):1227-31.
        doi: 10.3945/jn.114.209668pubmed: 25855119google scholar: lookup
      28. Marini JC, Didelija IC. Arginine depletion by arginine deiminase does not affect whole protein metabolism or muscle fractional protein synthesis rate in mice. PLoS One 2015;10(3):e0119801.
        doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0119801pubmed: 25775142google scholar: lookup
      29. Martínez-Montaño E, Peña E, Viana MT. Intestinal absorption of amino acids in the Pacific bluefin tuna (Thunnus orientalis): in vitro lysine-arginine interaction using the everted intestine system. Fish Physiol Biochem 2013 Apr;39(2):325-34.
        doi: 10.1007/s10695-012-9702-5pubmed: 23001589google scholar: lookup
      30. Stone E, Chantranupong L, Gonzalez C, O'Neal J, Rani M, VanDenBerg C, Georgiou G. Strategies for optimizing the serum persistence of engineered human arginase I for cancer therapy. J Control Release 2012 Feb 28;158(1):171-9.
        doi: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2011.09.097pubmed: 22001609google scholar: lookup
      31. Ligthart-Melis GC, Deutz NE. Is glutamine still an important precursor of citrulline?. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 2011 Aug;301(2):E264-6.
        doi: 10.1152/ajpendo.00223.2011pubmed: 21558548google scholar: lookup
      32. Gashew M, Reda GK, Almira FN, Abdelbary EM, Gulyás G, Knop R, Csernus B, Szabó C, Lendvai ÁZ, Czeglédi L. Dietary arginine modulates egg production and mTOR signalling pathway gene expression in adult Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica). Vet Anim Sci 2026 Mar;31:100567.
        doi: 10.1016/j.vas.2026.100567pubmed: 41562113google scholar: lookup
      33. Klotz C, Leisering R, Hagen KD, Starcevich HN, Müller A, Ewald C, Türken S, Marquardt M, Schramm S, Ehret Kasemo T, Marek S, Seeber F, Ignatius R, Dawson SC, Aebischer T. Arginine metabolism has a pivotal function for the encystation of Giardia duodenalis. PLoS Pathog 2026 Jan;22(1):e1013851.
        doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1013851pubmed: 41505477google scholar: lookup
      34. Bahrampour K, Afzali N, Hosseini-Vashan SJ. Arginine amino acid, nano particles of zinc oxide, and stock density: Effect on growth performance, intestinal morphology, blood indices, and meat quality in broiler chickens. Poult Sci 2026 Jan;105(1):106148.
        doi: 10.1016/j.psj.2025.106148pubmed: 41349476google scholar: lookup
      35. Lee MY, So KM, Lee SY, Lee WD, Cho HW, Bang HT, Chang S, Jung WY, Seo K, Chun JL, Kim KH. Comparative Evaluation of Nutrient Digestibility in Beagle Dogs of Different Life Stages. Animals (Basel) 2025 Oct 13;15(20).
        doi: 10.3390/ani15202963pubmed: 41153890google scholar: lookup
      36. Long DW, Long BD, Nawaratna GI, Wu G. Oral Administration of L-Arginine Improves the Growth and Survival of Sow-Reared Intrauterine Growth-Restricted Piglets. Animals (Basel) 2025 Feb 13;15(4).
        doi: 10.3390/ani15040550pubmed: 40003032google scholar: lookup
      37. Liaqat W, Anwar U, Fatima A, Rafique A, Mustafa R, Farooq U, Ramzan F, Abbas W, Khalid MF, Ashraf M, Riaz M, Bilal MQ, Rahman MAU. Effect of Ideal Amino Acid Ratio of Arginine to Lysine on Intake, Nutrient Digestibility, Growth Performance, Antibody Titers of Newcastle Disease and Infectious Bronchitis Disease, and Carcass Characteristics of Broilers. Animals (Basel) 2025 Jan 8;15(2).
        doi: 10.3390/ani15020135pubmed: 39858135google scholar: lookup
      38. Fathima S, Al Hakeem WG, Selvaraj RK, Shanmugasundaram R. Beyond protein synthesis: the emerging role of arginine in poultry nutrition and host-microbe interactions. Front Physiol 2023;14:1326809.
        doi: 10.3389/fphys.2023.1326809pubmed: 38235383google scholar: lookup
      39. Lee JT, Rochell SJ, Kriseldi R, Kim WK, Mitchell RD. Functional properties of amino acids: improve health status and sustainability. Poult Sci 2023 Jan;102(1):102288.
        doi: 10.1016/j.psj.2022.102288pubmed: 36436367google scholar: lookup
      Subscribe to our newsletter
      Join 99,850 horse owners like you who receive our email updates on horse health and nutrition.