The effects of dietary nitrogen level on the collagen of rat skin

1. Male rats of approximately 120 g body-weight were maintained on a commercial stock diet containing 204 g crude protein (nitrogen x 6.25)/kg, a hydroxyproline-free high-protein (HP) diet containing 200 g casein/kg as the only protein source, or a low-protein (LP) diet containing 40 g casein/kg. After 6 weeks on these diets half of each group was transferred to a non-protein (NP) diet and the experiment was continued for a further 6 weeks. Animals from each group were killed at 4 d, 3 weeks and 6 weeks after the transfer to the NP diet. 2. Throughout the experiment the urinary excretion of N, hydroxyproline and creatinine, and the content and solubility of the skin collagen were determined. 3. When compared with a control group killed at the beginning of the experiment the rats maintained on the LP diet showed an increase of 25% in total N content of the skin but collagen content increased by 100%. Rats transferred from the HP to the NP diet lost both N and collagen from the skin, but those transferred from the LP to the NP diet lost N but increased the collagen content by 42%. 4. Protein deprivation brought about marked changes in the solubility of the skin collagen, suggesting an increase in the rate of maturation of skin collagen.