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Ethanol and Leucine as Possible Stress Factors in Rats Marginally Deficient in Niacin and Vitamin B-6¹

Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720

Young rats were fed a purified diet containing no niacin (and 0.85 g/kg tryptophan) and only 0.5 mg/kg vitamin B-6. Three supplements were tested in a 2 x 2 x 2 multifactorial experiment: 1) 25 mg/kg niacin plus 7.3 mg/kg vitamin B-6; 2) 15 g/kg L-leucine; and 3) 12.15% (wt/wt) ethanol in the drinking water. The ethanol, for those receiving it, contributed approximately 15% of the rats' total energy intake, and their diets had some of the carbohydrate omitted to maintain approximately the same proportion of energy to other nutrients. The vitamin supplements stimulated 4-wk weight gain (and gain-feed ratio), but ethanol depressed it, and to a significantly greater extent in the absence of the vitamin supplement. Excretion of N¹-methylnicotinamide was increased only by the vitamin supplement. Leucine had no significant effects either by itself or by interaction with the other supplements.

KEY WORDS: • niacin • pyridoxine • leucine • ethanol • rats • N¹-methylnicotinamide • pellagra • vitamin B-6

¹ Supported by Grant No. 22492 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

² Current address: Children's Hospital of Oakland Research Institute, 747 52nd St., Oakland, CA 94609.

³ To whom requests for reprints should be sent.

Manuscript received 30 December 1987. Revision accepted 4 April 1988.