x. kfkkcts ok nkkk'i k\("y 273 



5. Pigs 



IIuslios and Si|iiil)l)^- showed (li;it pijjjs failed to grow on a viUmiiii Hr,- 

 doliciciil diet, had rou,t>;h coals, and liad poor appetites. 'J'hcy later devel- 

 oped epileptitorni fits which Ix'canie more and more freciuent. A microcytic 

 hypochromic anemia was protluced.^-- **■' Blood iiemoii,lol)in and red i)lood 

 cell counts were low; the size of tiie red hlood cell was also reduced. The 

 omission of pyridoxine and pantothenic acid from the diet of pi<i;s led to 

 the (lexelopmtMit of abnormal ^ait and dejicnerat i\'e chanji;es in the periph- 

 eral ner\-es, the posterior I'oot ji;aiij>,iia, lh(> i)()steri()i' roots, and the postei'ior 

 funiculi of the spinal cord.**' 



The pyridoxine-deficient animal continues to absorb iron; tissue iron 

 is abundant, but its utilization is diminished.^^ The rate of hemolysis does 

 not increase. The hemosiderosis of the liver, the spleen, and the bone 

 marrow of \itamin Be-deficient pigs can be prevented by restricting the 

 dietar^^ intake of iron. The urinary excretion of iron in pyridoxine defi- 

 ciency is insignificant and is not altered from the normal. Serum iron is 

 increased; it is in the ferric state. 



Follis and Wintrobe-^ investigated the nature of the changes in the 

 nervous system produced l)y the deficienc3^ Ataxia was first manifested as 

 a slightly higli lift of the hind legs, together with a swaying of the hind 

 ([Uarters in walking. The hind legs often twisted in one direction or an- 

 other. After 9 or 10 weeks of the deficiency, histologic changes were visible. 

 Demyelinization of the peripheral nerves occurred (brachial and sciatic); 

 the nerve fibers with the larger diameters w^ere affected most of all. The 

 degeneration was characterized b}^ the appearance of small droplets of 

 neutral fat and by the loss of the fine reticular structure of the myelin 

 sheath. Later, axis cylinder changes became endent. Myelin degeneration 

 was found onl}^ in the peripheral nerves in the early stages, but in the later 

 stages necrotic cells were found in the dorsal root ganglia. 



Lehrer et nl}' produced a vitamin Be deficiency in 2-day-old baby pigs. 

 Poor appetite was the earliest sign of the deficiency. Within 23 days the 

 piglets showed muscular incoordination, spastic gait, epileptiform fits, 

 rough hair coats, a brown exudate around the eyes and impairment of 



82 E. H. Ilajrhcs and R. L. Squihl), ./. Animal Sci. 1, ;320, (1942). 



"M. M. Wintrohe, R. H. FollLs, Jr., M. II. Miller, II. J. Steiii, R. Alcayaga, S. 



Humphreys, A. Suksta, and C!. E. Cartwrif^lit, Hull. Johns Hopkins Hosp. 72, 1 



(1943). 

 8^M. M. Wintrohe, M. H. Miller, R. H. Follis, Jr., H. J. Stein, C. Mushatt, and 



S. Humphreys, ./. Nutrition 24, 345 (1942). 

 8*G. E. Cartwright, M. M. Wintrohe, and S. lluniplircvis, ./. Biol. Chcin. 153, 171 



(1944). 

 88 R. H. Follis, Jr. and .M. .M. Wintroix-, ./. h\rpll. Mr,i. 81, 539 (1945). 

 8' W. P. Lehrer, Jr., A. C. Wiese, P. R. Moore, and M. !•]. Ensniingcr, ./. Animal Sci. 



10, G5 (1951). 



