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Ammonia Production and Its Contribution to Urinary Nitrogenous Compounds in Chickens Fed Low or High Protein Diet¹

Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Feed Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Shinshu University, Minamiminowa-mura, Nagano-ken 399-45, Japan

The rates of total ammonia production and of ammonia retention and contribution of endogenous ammonia to urinary nitrogenous compounds were assessed using a constant intravenous infusion method with [¹⁵N]ammonia for 6 h in adult cockerels fed 7.00 or 1.75 g of protein per kilogram body weight per day for 5 d. At the 7.00-g protein intake level the mean total body ammonia production rate was 47.1 µmol/kg per min, with total excretion and retention rates being 10.1 µmol/kg per min and 37.0 µmol/kg per min, respectively. In birds with 1.75 g protein intake the mean total body ammonia production rate was 27.9 µmol/kg per min, with total excretion and retention rates being 3.1 µmol/kg per min and 24.8 µmol/kg per min, respectively. These values were significantly different between the two dietary groups (P < 0.05–0.01). Ammonia N produced at low and high levels of dietary protein intake, contributed 33% and 84% of urinary uric acid N and 27% and 58% of urinary total N, respectively. With the above protein intake levels, 88% of urinary ammonia N and 6–9% of urinary nitrogenous compounds other than ammonia and uric acid were donated by ammonia N produced in the body. It is concluded that ammonia N produced in the body is the main source of uric acid N, which entirely explains the increase in urinary total N caused by feeding a high protein diet.

KEY WORDS: • ammonia flux • urinary N excretion • chicken • dietary protein intake

¹ Supported in part by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research C (No. 58560307) from the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture, Japan.

Manuscript received 4 October 1985. Revision accepted 14 July 1986.