Vitamin B12 Nutrition in some Primates in Captivity

Abstract

The amounts of vitamin B12 in the serum of a number of Primates were determined using the bio-assay with the organism Euglena gracilis. Prosimian genera had large amounts of serum vitamin compared to the Anthropoidea. In the Anthropoidea the level of the vitamin was reduced in animals captive for many years as compared with the levels in recently captive individuals; this may be associated with a vegetarian diet in captivity. This was confirmed by a longitudinal study in Maccaca and Erythrocebus in which the serum vitamin levels fell rapidly within a few months of introduction to the colony.