Term
| Which teeth are the carnassial teeth, and what is their purpose? |
|
Definition
last upper premolar, first lower molar
-for slicing/shearing, important for mechanics of eating a carcass |
|
|
Term
| What are the essential amino acids for most monogastric animals? |
|
Definition
Arginine
Histidine
Valine
Methionine
Phenylalanine
Tryptophan
Threonine
Leucine
Isoleucine
Lysine |
|
|
Term
| What are the essential fatty acids? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What are the most commonly occurring fatty acids? |
|
Definition
acetic
propionic
butryic
palmitic 16:0
palmitoleic 16:1 n-7
stearic 18:0
oleic 18:1
linoleic 18:2 n-6
linolenic 18:3 n-3
arachidonic 20:4 n-6 |
|
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Term
| What volume of a dog or cat's GI tract is attributed to the stomach? Small intestine? Cecum? Colon & rectum? |
|
Definition
60% of the GI tract is stomach space (dogs & cats)
20% is small intestine
1% is cecum (dogs only!)
15% is colon & rectum |
|
|
Term
| What is the longest component of the digestive tract in cats and dogs? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What is the digestibility percentage of NFE, CP, fat and energy for dogs? |
|
Definition
NFE 70%
CP 87%
Fat 92%
Energy 89 |
|
|
Term
| What is the digestibility percentage of NFE, CP, fat and energy for cats? |
|
Definition
NFE 67%
CP 82%
Fat 76%
Energy 79% |
|
|
Term
| Which amino acids are 'problematic', and not very common in food sources? |
|
Definition
Tryptophan
Lysine
Methionine
Cysteine |
|
|
Term
True or False
Lysine is one of the most commonly found AA's in plant food sources |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
True or False
The conversion of proline to hydroxyproline is reversible |
|
Definition
| False, can only go one way |
|
|
Term
| Why can amino acids be used for gluconeogenesis? |
|
Definition
| Because they contribute carbons when catabolized. Transamination or deamination of the AA's means they can enter the pathway directly (in the form of pyruvate) or indirectly (through the citric acid cycle) |
|
|
Term
| Which two amino acids cannot be used for gluconeogenesis? Why not? |
|
Definition
lysine and leucine
They cannot produce gluconeogenic precursors |
|
|
Term
| Why is it important that we are able to metabolize amino acids on an individual level? |
|
Definition
| Not all AAs are as common in different food sources. e.g. methionine is rare, want to be able to store it and metabolize it as needed, rather than metabolize it just as quickly as other AAs which are found more commonly in food |
|
|
Term
| What sulphonic amino acid is particularly important in cats? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What diet was fed to kittens that led to the discovery of the importance of taurine in preventing blindness? |
|
Definition
| a casein (milk protein) based diet |
|
|
Term
| What are the symptoms of a taurine deficiency in cats? |
|
Definition
Central Retinal Degeneration
-blindness in kittens (can be permanent!)
Dilated Cardiomyopathy
-heart failure in adult cats
Reproductive failure in female |
|
|
Term
| What diet was fed to cats that led to the discovery of the importance of taurine in ensuring a healthy cardiovascular system? |
|
Definition
a veterinary prescription diet that lacked taurine
-adult cats developed dilated cardiomyopathy ("flabby heart") |
|
|
Term
| What amino acid can be converted to cysteine? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What are the two main metabolic pathways involving cysteine? |
|
Definition
Using cysteine to make pyruvate
Using cysteine to make taurine |
|
|
Term
| Describe the metabolic pathway involved in converting cysteine to taurine |
|
Definition
(Methionine -> Cysteine)
1. Cysteine
2. Cysteine sulphinic acid
3. Hypotaurine
4. Taurine |
|
|
Term
| Why do dogs have better digestion & absorption than cats? How much better is it? |
|
Definition
| dogs have a longer GI tract, and therefore digest & absorb their food 1.6x better than cats |
|
|
Term
| What are the general uses of amino acids in the body? (4) |
|
Definition
1. Protein synthesis
2. Special products such as carnitine
3. Converted to carbon skeletons (used for energy)
4. Nitrogenous waste - urea (mammals) uric acid (birds) |
|
|
Term
| What is the required percentage of crude protein in the diet of an adult cat vs a dog? What is the ratio of cat/dog? |
|
Definition
cat - 30%
dog - 26%
approx. 1.4 : 1 |
|
|
Term
| What does AAFCO stand for? |
|
Definition
| Association of American Feed Control Officials |
|
|
Term
| If the quality of the protein source is decreased, how can you compensate to meet the animal's protein requirements? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What is the mean ratio of amino acid requirement in kittens vs puppies? |
|
Definition
| kittens have a 1.5x greater requirement than puppies |
|
|
Term
| Why do cats produce large amounts of nitrogenous waste? |
|
Definition
| They cannot slow down the rate of protein catabolism |
|
|
Term
| Why are cats unable to tolerate food deprivation? |
|
Definition
| They cannot slow down the rate of protein digestion/nitrogen loss, will use up their lean muscle mass and fat stores rapidly |
|
|
Term
| What is the water-soluble product of fat catabolism that can be used by the brain as a source of energy? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What disease are cats at a high risk of developing when in a state of starvation? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| How can you prevent central retinal degeneration in kittens if their diet is deficient in taurine? |
|
Definition
| feed high levels of sulfur-containing amino acids |
|
|
Term
| Why do cats have a poor capacity for taurine synthesis? |
|
Definition
cysteine dioxygenase & cysteine sulphinic acid decarboxylase enzymes are not very active (in liver)
competition for the use of cysteine to produce pyruvate rather than taurine |
|
|
Term
| What is the minimum dietary requirement for taurine in cats (dry food and wet)? |
|
Definition
Dry - 1000mg/kg
Wet - 2000mg/kg |
|
|
Term
| What enzyme is released in response to the presence of fats in the intestine? What response does it trigger? |
|
Definition
cholecystokinin (CSK)
-triggers the release of bile salts from the liver |
|
|
Term
| What happens to bile salts after they have done their job in fat digestion in the intestine? |
|
Definition
| they are either resorbed into the blood stream and returned to the liver, or further broken down by intestinal bacteria and excreted |
|
|
Term
| Why does a high-fat diet increase the need for taurine in cats? |
|
Definition
higher fat = greater need for bile salts & bile acids
-bile salts are conjugated with taurine in cats
-increases the rate of taurine loss after fat digestion |
|
|
Term
| Why is there a greater need for taurine when cats are fed a canned-food diet? |
|
Definition
canned food is typically higher in fat, which increases bile acid needs
maillard products formed during the canning process may increase hindgut microbial activity, increasing the rate of bile acid deconjugation & taurine loss |
|
|
Term
| What effects do maillard products have on digestion in cats? |
|
Definition
-enhance microbial activity in the hindgut (increases bile acid/taurine deconjugation)
-stimulates CCK production, increasine bile acid secretion
These both contribue to taurine loss |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What are the 3 types of dog skulls discussed in class? Name a breed associated with each |
|
Definition
Dolichocephalic (e.g. collies, Afghan hound)
Mesaticephlic (e.g. beagle, foxhound)
Brachycephalic (e.g. pug, boxer) |
|
|
Term
| What disease is associated with a taurine deficiency in some dog breeds? Which breeds? |
|
Definition
dilated cardiomypathy
cocker spaniels, retrievers, st bernards, newfoundlandes (large breeds!) |
|
|
Term
| Why do small breeds manage to take in a higher level of taurine than large breeds? |
|
Definition
| They have a higher need for kcal per kg of body weight, therefore take in more food and subsequently consume more taurine than large breeds |
|
|
Term
| What aspects of diet may increase the risk of taurine deficiency in dogs? |
|
Definition
Long-term protein restricted diet
-simply not getting enough taurine or its precursors
Vegetable-based protein sources
-don't contain taurine or low in its sulfur-based precursors
Higher-fiber diets
increases microbial action in gut, catabolism of taurine-conjugated bile acids
Lamb-meal and rice diets
Maillard products may stimulate microbial growth, same effect as high fiber diets |
|
|
Term
| What mineral cannot be measured through proximate analysis? |
|
Definition
selenium
-it is volatile and gets 'burned up' in proximate analysis |
|
|
Term
| What issue was found with wheat-gluten pet food products? |
|
Definition
-caused renal failure in cats & dogs
-increased presence of melamine gives the appearance of higher crude protein in proximate analysis
-melamine is high in nitrogen but this is not equivalent to being high in CP
-melamine is toxic, overloading the kidneys |
|
|
Term
| What are the gross energy values for carbohydrates, fat and protein? |
|
Definition
CHO: 4kcal
fat: 9kcal (less oxygen = higher energy density)
protein: 5kcal |
|
|
Term
| What percentage of melamine is composed of nitrogen? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| If we have a food sample of wheat gluten which is 9% melamine, and melamine is composed of 67% nitrogen, what is the percentage of protein apparently found in the wheat gluten? |
|
Definition
| 0.09 X 0.67 X 100 = 6.03% nitrogen |
|
|
Term
| What percentage of protein is composed of nitrogen? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| If a pet food sample is found to contain 5% nitrogen, what is the % protein in the sample? |
|
Definition
| 5 X 6.25 = 31.25% crude protein |
|
|
Term
| What is the AAFCO protein requirement for kittens? |
|
Definition
| 30% of the dry matter weight |
|
|
Term
| What two pigments are responsible for hair colour maintenance in cats? |
|
Definition
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