Nutritional Cytopenia in Monkeys Receiving the Goldberger Diet

Experiments are reported upon young rhesus monkeys which were given a diet essentially the same as the Goldberger black tongue-producing diet, supplemented in various ways. Those receiving the unsupplemented diet developed the syndrome characterized by leucopenia, anemia, gingivitis, diarrhea, and death, which has been previously described in monkeys receiving our diet of refined foodstuffs. An animal receiving the Goldberger diet supplemented with ascorbic acid and liver extract exhibited normal growth and development and has maintained a normal blood picture for approximately 2 years. Likewise, the feeding of a crude liver extract to an animal with profound anemia and leucopenia was followed by a dramatic reticulocyte response and ultimate recovery. However, the ash of liver extract failed to maintain a normal blood picture or to prolong life. Supplementing the diet with ascorbic acid, thiamin chloride, nicotinic acid (or amide), and riboflavin failed to prevent the leucopenia, gingivitis, diarrhea, and death. The combination of nicotinic acid and riboflavin, however, appeared to have a definite erythropoietic effect. Shigella paradysenteriae was isolated from the stools of several of the animals which received the deficient diet. Further studies are needed to clarify the relationship between the deficiency, the infection, and the blood picture. Three of the animals exhibited edema of the face. It is evident that the Goldberger diet, even when supplemented with nicotinic acid, riboflavin, thiamin, and ascorbic acid, is inadequate for maintenance of health in the young monkey. The nature of the deficiency manifestations would indicate that the diet is deficient in the substance or substances which we have previously termed vitamin M.