Investigations on the influence of duodenal histidine infusion on nitrogen and amino acid turnover of growing German Holstein bulls.

The effect of a continuous duodenal infusion of L-histidine (His) (8 g/d) on the retention of nitrogen was investigated in two experiments (I, II), each of which was carried out using two young bulls. In Exps. I and II, the animals (150-250 kg BW) were fitted with a re-entrant cannula in the proximal duodenum and were fed diets containing 125 g CP/kg DM and 11.5 MJ ME/kg DM. A third experiment (III) using two young bulls (140-200 kg BW) fitted with a simple T-cannula was carried out infusing 6 g L-His. The animals were fed a low protein diet (94 g CP/kg DM and 11 MJ ME/kg DM). The study was done to find out whether or not L-His is the first limiting amino acid (AA) for growing ruminants. N retention was 28 and 31, 38 and 38, 22 and 24 g/d without L-His infusion and with L-His infusion for Exps. I, II and III, respectively. Both in the experiments with a standard protein supply (I, II) and in the experiment with reduced protein supply (III), no significant differences were found between periods with and without infusion of L-His. The utilisation of duodenal NAN varied between 39% and 50% and was also not significantly influenced by the duodenal infusion of L-His. No significant effect was observed on the flow of AA into the duodenum. The faecal excretion of AA was also not significantly influenced by the infusion of L-His. The utilisation of individual amino acids as calculated by the ratio of retained AA to intestinal apparently digested AA, did not differ significantly following the duodenal infusion of L-His. As expected, the utilisation of His decreased. Of the different essential AA, L-His was the most utilised (80%) followed by Arg (72%), Met (60%), Leu (45%) and Lys (44%), during periods without supplementation of L-His. It is concluded that the intestinal supply of L-His from the basal diet was sufficient for the potential growth level of animals under these experimental conditions. In all AA present at the proximal duodenum, L-His could have at first a limiting effect on the performance of growing young bulls with high body gain. Arg and Met, but not Lys, could be second or co-limiting AA.