Pathology of Arginine Deficiency in the Chick

Abstract

The ataxia and muscle paralysis commonly observed in the arginine-deficient chick were not related directly to low content of muscle creatine. Deficient chicks showed extensive motor neuron damage in the spinal cord, demyelination of peripheral nerves and atrophy of leg muscles. Abnormal bone development with a degenerate bony matrix was associated with the grossly abnormal tibia which was twisted from its normal axis. Nerve damage appeared to be sufficiently severe to explain the stilted gait of arginine-deficient chicks and the abnormal bone development accounts for the peculiar stance. Damage to the epithelium of the feather follicle probably accounts for the incomplete development of this appendage.