Interrelation Between -Tocopherol and Protein Metabolism: Body Weight and Tooth Pigmentation of Rats.

Abstract

Adult male rats have been fed fixed daily quantities of vitamin E-low diets containing 5. 20, or 40% crude casein. On the 5% casein diet the animals lost weight and developed muscle dystrophy, testicular atrophy. stomach ulcers, and tooth depiqmentation. These symptoms of a vitamin E deficiency were prevented either by 2-tocopherol or by the higher protein diets. The possible sig- in increasing the vitamin E requirement ofnificance of a lack of individual amino acids rats is discussed.