Dose-response relationships between amino acid intake and blood levels in newborn infants

The objective of the present investigation was to investigate the nature of the blood amino acid response with amino acid intake in newborn infants. Forty-nine newborn infants of 640 to 4020 g birth weight and 26 to 40 weeks gestational age were placed on one of the following regimes within 48 hr of birth: intravenous dextrose with intravenous feeding of three levels of crystalline amino acid mixture, or of one level of casein hydrolysate, or with oral feeding of two levels of milk formula. Blood amino acid levels at 132 hr after feeding of graded levels of the intravenous amino acid solution were evaluated by regression analyses and compared to blood levels when casein hydrolysate was fed intravenously or milk formula was fed orally. At low levels of amino acid intake, such as were achieved with formula feeding, blood levels were relatively unchanged. However, with higher intakes, as were obtained with intravenous feedings, blood levels increased at rates which could be defined for each amino acid. This observation suggests that if the composition and rate of delivery of an amino acid solution is known, blood levels may be predicted.