Nutritional myopathy in ducklings: a growth rate-dependent symptom of "tissue peroxidosis' due to a net nutritional shortage of vitamin E plus selenium in skeletal muscle.
Although low dietary vitamin E is an absolute prerequisite for the occurrence of nutritional myopathy in ducklings, it was found that the myopathy can be prevented if the vitamin E depletion does not start before 2 weeks of age and if the dietary selenium content is not too low (greater than 74 ppb). Under these circumstances growth remained normal and the animals stayed alive during the experimental period of 14 weeks, despite low levels of vitamin E in serum, liver, and muscle. The weekly growth rate of the nondeficient duckling, as derived from the growth curve, is extremely high during the first 2 weeks of age with a distinct peak during the 2nd week followed by a steep fall during the 3rd week. In vitamin E-deficient ducklings tissue vitamin E dilution curves were calculated by mathematic transformation of the growth curve. Th results suggest that a critical net nutritional shortage of vitamin E plus selenium in skeletal muscle causes myopathy in ducklings. It is proposed that nutritional myopathy should be considered as a symptom of "tissue peroxidosis' and not as a symptom of vitamin E deficiency per se.
D000367:Age Factors; D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004372:Ducks; D006128:Growth; D008054:Lipid Peroxides / Q000378:metabolism*; D008099:Liver / Q000032:analysis; D008297:Male; D009132:Muscles / Q000032:analysis; D009135:Muscular Diseases / Q000209:etiology* / Q000662:veterinary*; D011201:Poultry Diseases / Q000209:etiology*; D012643:Selenium / Q000172:deficiency / Q000494:pharmacology*; D014810:Vitamin E / Q000032:analysis; D014811:Vitamin E Deficiency / Q000150:complications* / Q000662:veterinary*
D008054:Lipid Peroxides; D014810:Vitamin E; D012643:Selenium