Effects of Feeding X-Irradiated Pork to Rats on their Pyridoxine Nutrition as Reflected in the Activity of Plasma Transaminases

Abstract

Pork samples which were x-irradiated at the 1 × (2.79 megarad) and at the 2 × (5.58 megarad) levels and unirradiated pork were incorporated into diets at 35% on a dry-weight basis and fed to rats in the following 4 groups: control pork with added pyridoxine (DPO), control pork without added pyridoxine (DPO-P), 1 × pork without added pyridoxine (DP3-P), and 2 × pork without added pyridoxine (DP-6). Growth was followed for 12 weeks at which time plasmas were submitted for the determination of the alanine and the aspartic transaminase enzymes. No differences in growth were noted. Although no effect was seen on the activity of the aspartic transaminase, the plasma alanine enzyme was depressed significantly and increasingly in the DPO-P, DP3-P and DP6-P groups, respectively. It was concluded that the rats fed the x-irradiated pork were subject to marginal deficiency of pyridoxine.