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A Failure of Chickens to Respond to Arsanilic Acid
A Failure of Chickens to Respond to Arsanilic Acid M. W. MCDONALD
Poultry Experiment Station, Seven Hills, N. S. W., Australia (Received for publication March 23, 1954)
F
EXPERIMENTAL
Two groups of thirty White Leghorn day old pullets were allocated at random to each of four treatments and raised on wire floors, in an electrically heated brooder, until termination of the experiment at five weeks. Feed and water were supplied ad libitum. The supplements, given in Table 1, were added to the following basal ration: crushed wheat 65\ lb., meat meal 22 lb., buttermilk powder 7 lb., lucerne meal 5 lb., salt | lb., manganese sulphate 3J gm. and vitamin A & D3 emulsion (5,000 I.u.A. and 500 A.0.A.C units D 3 per gm.) 4 fluid ozs. per 100 lb. mash. Due to errors in sexing, numbers of cockerels were found in some treatments; the weights of these have been excluded from the group averages and the statistical analysis, but have been included in the feed/gain ratio in the table. Arsanilic acid alone failed to produce a
TABLE 1. Group
Supplement
1 2 3 4
None Arsanilic Acid* Procaine Penicillin" Arsanilic Acid1 plus Procaine Penicillin2
1 2 3
Average 5 week weight 0.568 lb.* 0.5801b. 0.6641b. 0.6611b.
Feed/gain ratio 2.56 2.47 2.38 2.40
Arsanilic acid fed at 4.5 gm./lOO lb. mash. Procaine penicillin fed at 160 mg./lOO lb. mash. Least significant difference (p <0.05) in average weight. ±0.033 lb. or 5.5%.
55
Downloaded from http://ps.oxfordjournals.org/ at Ritsumeikan University on June 9, 2015
significant increase in growth rate and only a slight improvement in feed efficiency. Procaine penicillin under the same conditions produced a 16 percent growth increase and a greater improvement in feed efficiency than arsanilic acid. Arsanilic acid and penicillin together were no better than penicillin alone. The failure of arsanilic acid under these conditions when penicillin is capable of producing a response, suggests that there are fundamental differences between the mechanisms of growth stimulation. Some similarity in the mode of action of these two groups of substances has been suggested by reports of suppression of intestinal Clostridia following diet supplementation, e.g. Elam, Jacobs, Tidwell, Gee and Couch (1953) and a brief report by Frost and Spruth (1953). However, Smyser, Cleverdon, Kulp and Matterson (1952) produced evidence that suppression of Clostridium perfringens was of very little importance in the growth response to antibiotics. Lih and Baumann (1951) and Frost and Spruth (1953) have considered that arsonic and arsanilic acids differ in action from antibiotics in their lack of any sparing of requirements for certain of the vitamin B group, in rats and chickens fed supplemented rations. The basal ration
OLLOWING the reports by Morehouse and Mayfield (1946), Morehouse (1949) and Bird, Groschke and Rubin (1949) that 3-nitro 4-hydroxyphenylarsonic acid (arsenic acid) is able to stimulate chicken growth, Bird (1952) has reported that a related compound, p-amino-phenylarsonic acid (arsanilic acid) is similarly active. These growth responses were demonstrated when antibiotics were also capable of stimulating growth. Scott and Glista (1950) have reported the failure of arsonic acid and aureomycin alone and in combination, to stimulate chicken growth. In this report a failure of arsanilic acid is recorded under conditions in which penicillin gave an active response.
56
D. V. FROST AND H. C. SPRUTH
fed in this experiment does not appear to be marginal in any known B vitamin, indicating that the response to penicillin was not due to this effect. Thus when the growth rate is not limited by the availability of known B vitamins, there may exist a growth depression which is overcome by penicillin but not by arsanilic acid. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
REFERENCES Bird, H. R., A. C. Groschke and M. Rubin, 1949. Effect of arsonic acid derivatives in stimulating growth of chickens. J. Nutrition, 37: 215-226. Bird, H. R., 1952. Arsonic compounds in feeds. Feed Age, 2: 80. Cited by Libby D. A., A. C. Groschke, R. J. Evans and S. L. Bandemer, 1952. Michigan Agri. Exp. Sta. Quart. Bull. 35: 419.
Control of Hemorrhagic Condition in Chickens with Menadione Sodium Bisulfite1 DOUGLAS V. FROST AND HENRY C. SPRUTH Abbott Laboratories, North Chicago, Illinois (Received for publication March 31, 1954)
G
RIMINGER et al. (1953), have in part simulated the commonly observed hemorrhagic condition of poultry by producing a characteristic vitamin K deficiency in laboratory birds. We were interested, using their type diet, to test the vitamin K effect of water soluble menadione sodium bisulfite as compared with menadione itself. The chemistry of the sodium bisulfite addition product of 2-methyl-l, 4-naphthoquinone (menadione) is described by Carmack et al. 1
Presented in part at the Informal Poultry Nutrition Conference, Atlantic City, April, 1954.
(1950). This compound is of interest in view of its recent use in control of hemorrhage in poultry. We were concerned also in this study to test the effects of arsanilic acid at various levels in a practical type feed containing no alfalfa. Griminger et al. (1953) reported that 0.01 percent arsanilic acid in their diet prolonged clotting time, although not significantly. Sweet et al. (1954) in a follow-up of the Illinois work reported significant prolongation of clotting times for both arsanilic acid and sulfaquinoxaline, each at 0.03 percent of their
Downloaded from http://ps.oxfordjournals.org/ at Ritsumeikan University on June 9, 2015
The statistical analysis was carried out by Mr. C. H. Gray. The arsanilic acid was kindly donated by Abbott Laboratories (Aust.) Pty. Ltd., Sydney.
Elam, J. F., R. J. Jacobs, W. L. Tidwell, L. L. Gee and J. R. Couch, 1953. "Possible mechanisms involved in the growth promoting responses obtained from antibiotics." J. Nutrition, 49: 307317. Frost, D. V., and H. C. Spruth, 1953. Further studies on arsanilic acid and related compounds in nutrition. Poultry Sci. 32: 900. Lih, H., and C. A. Baumann, 1951. Effects of certain antibiotics on the growth of rats fed diets limiting in thiamine, riboflavin or pantothenic acid. J. Nutrition, 45: 143-152. Morehouse, N. F., and C. J. Mayfield, 1946. The effect of some aryl arsonic acids on experimental coccidiosis infections in chickens. J. Parasitology, 32:20-24. Morehouse, N. F., 1949. Accelerated growth in chickens and turkeys produced by 3-nitro-4-hydroxyphenyl arsonic acid. Poultry Sci. 28: 375-384. Scott, H. M., and W. A. Glista, 1950. The effect of aureomycin and arsonic acid on chick growth. Poultry Sci. 29: 921-923. Smyser, C. F., A. C. Cleverdon, W. L. Kulp and L. D. Matterson, 1952. Effect of dietary antibiotics on numbers of Clostridium perfringens in feces of chickens. Antibiotics and Chemotherapy, 2:363-365.
Poultry Experiment Station, Seven Hills, N. S. W., Australia (Received for publication March 23, 1954)
F
EXPERIMENTAL
Two groups of thirty White Leghorn day old pullets were allocated at random to each of four treatments and raised on wire floors, in an electrically heated brooder, until termination of the experiment at five weeks. Feed and water were supplied ad libitum. The supplements, given in Table 1, were added to the following basal ration: crushed wheat 65\ lb., meat meal 22 lb., buttermilk powder 7 lb., lucerne meal 5 lb., salt | lb., manganese sulphate 3J gm. and vitamin A & D3 emulsion (5,000 I.u.A. and 500 A.0.A.C units D 3 per gm.) 4 fluid ozs. per 100 lb. mash. Due to errors in sexing, numbers of cockerels were found in some treatments; the weights of these have been excluded from the group averages and the statistical analysis, but have been included in the feed/gain ratio in the table. Arsanilic acid alone failed to produce a
TABLE 1. Group
Supplement
1 2 3 4
None Arsanilic Acid* Procaine Penicillin" Arsanilic Acid1 plus Procaine Penicillin2
1 2 3
Average 5 week weight 0.568 lb.* 0.5801b. 0.6641b. 0.6611b.
Feed/gain ratio 2.56 2.47 2.38 2.40
Arsanilic acid fed at 4.5 gm./lOO lb. mash. Procaine penicillin fed at 160 mg./lOO lb. mash. Least significant difference (p <0.05) in average weight. ±0.033 lb. or 5.5%.
55
Downloaded from http://ps.oxfordjournals.org/ at Ritsumeikan University on June 9, 2015
significant increase in growth rate and only a slight improvement in feed efficiency. Procaine penicillin under the same conditions produced a 16 percent growth increase and a greater improvement in feed efficiency than arsanilic acid. Arsanilic acid and penicillin together were no better than penicillin alone. The failure of arsanilic acid under these conditions when penicillin is capable of producing a response, suggests that there are fundamental differences between the mechanisms of growth stimulation. Some similarity in the mode of action of these two groups of substances has been suggested by reports of suppression of intestinal Clostridia following diet supplementation, e.g. Elam, Jacobs, Tidwell, Gee and Couch (1953) and a brief report by Frost and Spruth (1953). However, Smyser, Cleverdon, Kulp and Matterson (1952) produced evidence that suppression of Clostridium perfringens was of very little importance in the growth response to antibiotics. Lih and Baumann (1951) and Frost and Spruth (1953) have considered that arsonic and arsanilic acids differ in action from antibiotics in their lack of any sparing of requirements for certain of the vitamin B group, in rats and chickens fed supplemented rations. The basal ration
OLLOWING the reports by Morehouse and Mayfield (1946), Morehouse (1949) and Bird, Groschke and Rubin (1949) that 3-nitro 4-hydroxyphenylarsonic acid (arsenic acid) is able to stimulate chicken growth, Bird (1952) has reported that a related compound, p-amino-phenylarsonic acid (arsanilic acid) is similarly active. These growth responses were demonstrated when antibiotics were also capable of stimulating growth. Scott and Glista (1950) have reported the failure of arsonic acid and aureomycin alone and in combination, to stimulate chicken growth. In this report a failure of arsanilic acid is recorded under conditions in which penicillin gave an active response.
56
D. V. FROST AND H. C. SPRUTH
fed in this experiment does not appear to be marginal in any known B vitamin, indicating that the response to penicillin was not due to this effect. Thus when the growth rate is not limited by the availability of known B vitamins, there may exist a growth depression which is overcome by penicillin but not by arsanilic acid. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
REFERENCES Bird, H. R., A. C. Groschke and M. Rubin, 1949. Effect of arsonic acid derivatives in stimulating growth of chickens. J. Nutrition, 37: 215-226. Bird, H. R., 1952. Arsonic compounds in feeds. Feed Age, 2: 80. Cited by Libby D. A., A. C. Groschke, R. J. Evans and S. L. Bandemer, 1952. Michigan Agri. Exp. Sta. Quart. Bull. 35: 419.
Control of Hemorrhagic Condition in Chickens with Menadione Sodium Bisulfite1 DOUGLAS V. FROST AND HENRY C. SPRUTH Abbott Laboratories, North Chicago, Illinois (Received for publication March 31, 1954)
G
RIMINGER et al. (1953), have in part simulated the commonly observed hemorrhagic condition of poultry by producing a characteristic vitamin K deficiency in laboratory birds. We were interested, using their type diet, to test the vitamin K effect of water soluble menadione sodium bisulfite as compared with menadione itself. The chemistry of the sodium bisulfite addition product of 2-methyl-l, 4-naphthoquinone (menadione) is described by Carmack et al. 1
Presented in part at the Informal Poultry Nutrition Conference, Atlantic City, April, 1954.
(1950). This compound is of interest in view of its recent use in control of hemorrhage in poultry. We were concerned also in this study to test the effects of arsanilic acid at various levels in a practical type feed containing no alfalfa. Griminger et al. (1953) reported that 0.01 percent arsanilic acid in their diet prolonged clotting time, although not significantly. Sweet et al. (1954) in a follow-up of the Illinois work reported significant prolongation of clotting times for both arsanilic acid and sulfaquinoxaline, each at 0.03 percent of their
Downloaded from http://ps.oxfordjournals.org/ at Ritsumeikan University on June 9, 2015
The statistical analysis was carried out by Mr. C. H. Gray. The arsanilic acid was kindly donated by Abbott Laboratories (Aust.) Pty. Ltd., Sydney.
Elam, J. F., R. J. Jacobs, W. L. Tidwell, L. L. Gee and J. R. Couch, 1953. "Possible mechanisms involved in the growth promoting responses obtained from antibiotics." J. Nutrition, 49: 307317. Frost, D. V., and H. C. Spruth, 1953. Further studies on arsanilic acid and related compounds in nutrition. Poultry Sci. 32: 900. Lih, H., and C. A. Baumann, 1951. Effects of certain antibiotics on the growth of rats fed diets limiting in thiamine, riboflavin or pantothenic acid. J. Nutrition, 45: 143-152. Morehouse, N. F., and C. J. Mayfield, 1946. The effect of some aryl arsonic acids on experimental coccidiosis infections in chickens. J. Parasitology, 32:20-24. Morehouse, N. F., 1949. Accelerated growth in chickens and turkeys produced by 3-nitro-4-hydroxyphenyl arsonic acid. Poultry Sci. 28: 375-384. Scott, H. M., and W. A. Glista, 1950. The effect of aureomycin and arsonic acid on chick growth. Poultry Sci. 29: 921-923. Smyser, C. F., A. C. Cleverdon, W. L. Kulp and L. D. Matterson, 1952. Effect of dietary antibiotics on numbers of Clostridium perfringens in feces of chickens. Antibiotics and Chemotherapy, 2:363-365.