Requirement of tryptophan in relation to the supply of large neutral amino acids in laying hens

Institut fur Ernahrungswissenschaften, Martin-Luther-Universitat Halle-Wittenberg, Emil-Abderhalden-Strasse 26, D-06108 Halle/Saale, Germany.

The present study was undertaken to find out whether the tryptophan requirement of laying hens is influenced by the supply of large neutral amino acids (LNAA). A factorial experiment was performed in which the dietary tryptophan concentration was varied at six different levels (1.0, 1.25, 1.5, 1.75, 2.0, and 2.5 g tryptophan/kg diet). As the second factor, the dietary concentrations of LNAA (isoleucine, valine, leucine, phenylalanine, and tyrosine) were varied at two levels. The first level provided an adequate supply of these amino acids; at the second level the concentrations of these amino acids were 40% higher than at the first level. The tryptophan requirement was estimated by a broken-line model and an exponential model of regression analysis. The tryptophan intake required for optimum (100% of maximum in the broken-line model, 95% of the maximum in the exponential model) egg production and daily egg mass was lower in hens fed the diets with high LNAA concentrations (145 and 155 mg/hen per day, respectively, in average of both models) than in hens fed the diets with adequate concentrations of LNAA (184 and 198 mg/hen per day, respectively, in average of both models). In contrast, the tryptophan requirement for optimum BW gain was lower in hens fed the diets with adequate LNAA concentrations (178 mg tryptophan per day) than in hens fed the diets with a high concentration of LNAA (212 mg tryptophan per day). In conclusion, the study suggests that an interaction between dietary LNAA and tryptophan exists in laying hens.