A Comparison of the Effects of Pyridoxine and Pantothenic Acid Deficiencies on T H E Nervous Tissues of Swine* By

During the past 6 years, experiments have been reported from this laboratory on swine in which deficiencies in vitamins of the B complex have been produced. Of particular interest have been the studies on the relationship of vitamin deficiency to the integrity of nervous tissues. I t was first shown that degeneration of the peripheral nerves, dorsal root ganglion cells, and posterior columns of the spinal cord could be produced when young swine were fed a basal diet (crude casein, sugar, lard, salts, and cod liver oil) supplemented only with crystalline thiamin and riboflavin (1). Although the inclusion of nicotinic acid in this diet led to some improvement in growth, the nerve, ganglion cell, and spinal cord changes continued to appear (2). When other vitamins of the B group became available, it was shown that good growth could be obtained and neural lesions could be prevented if choline, pyridoxine, and pantothenic acid were added to the basal diet already supplemented with thiamin, riboflavin, and nicotinic acid (3). Finally, it was established that lesions could be produced in sensory neurons when pyridoxine and/or pantothenic acid were excluded from the diet (3).