Pickett J P, Chesney R W, Beehler B, Moore C P, Lippincott S, Sturman J, Ketring K L
Department of Pediatrics, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin, Madison 53706.
J Am Vet Med Assoc. 1990 Jan 15;196(2):342-6.
A white Bengal tiger was determined to have a central retinal lesion and a central visual defect. Because of the known association between feline central retinal degeneration (CRD) and taurine deficiency in domestic cats, plasma concentrations of taurine were measured in this tiger. Serum concentrations of taurine, methionine, and cystine also were measured in white Bengal tigers, orange Bengal tigers, taurine-sufficient domestic cats, and taurine-deprived and tissue-taurine-depleted visually impaired cats with CRD. Hepatic and brain enzymes responsible for taurine synthesis were identified in tissue specimens from an orange Bengal tiger. Serum taurine concentrations were lower in white vs orange tigers, but were not as low as those in cats with CRD. Thus, we concluded that taurine depletion did not account for the central retinal lesion in the white Bengal tiger.
一只白色孟加拉虎被判定患有视网膜中央病变和中央视觉缺陷。由于家猫中已知的猫视网膜中央变性（CRD）与牛磺酸缺乏之间的关联，对这只老虎的血浆牛磺酸浓度进行了测量。还对白孟加拉虎、橙色孟加拉虎、牛磺酸充足的家猫以及患有CRD的牛磺酸缺乏和组织牛磺酸耗竭的视力受损猫的血清牛磺酸、蛋氨酸和胱氨酸浓度进行了测量。在一只橙色孟加拉虎的组织标本中鉴定出负责牛磺酸合成的肝脏和脑酶。白色老虎的血清牛磺酸浓度低于橙色老虎，但不像患有CRD的猫那样低。因此，我们得出结论，牛磺酸耗竭不能解释白色孟加拉虎的视网膜中央病变。
