TABLE 1.
Nutrient composition and amino acid profiles (mean ± standard deviation) of milk replacer (Advance Excelerate, Milk Specialties, Carpentersville, IL, United States) and starter grain (Ampli-Calf Starter 20; Purina Animal Nutrition, Shoreview, MN, United States) fed during preweaning period to heifer calves born to cows offered a control diet (CON, n = 13) or CON supplemented with ethyl-cellulose rumen-protected methionine (MET, n = 13; Mepron® at 0.09% of diet DM; Evonik Nutrition & Care GmbH, Germany) during the last 28 days of pregnancy.
| Item | Milk replacer | Starter grain mix |
| DM, g/kg | 946 ± 11 | 908 ± 27 |
| CP, g/kg | 272 ± 44 | 209 ± 23 |
| Essential amino acids, % of DM | ||
| Arginine | 0.84 ± 0.07 | 1.39 ± 0.03 |
| Histidine | 0.59 ± 0.02 | 0.55 ± 0.01 |
| Isoleucine | 1.60 ± 0.06 | 0.82 ± 0.01 |
| Leucine | 2.90 ± 0.07 | 1.52 ± 0.03 |
| Lysine | 2.30 ± 0.12 | 1.07 ± 0.02 |
| Methionine | 0.53 ± 0.02 | 0.29 ± 0.01 |
| Phenylalanine | 1.01 ± 0.02 | 0.98 ± 0.01 |
| Threonine | 1.83 ± 0.04 | 0.77 ± 0.02 |
| Valine | 1.59 ± 0.03 | 0.97 ± 0.01 |
| Non-essential amino acids, % of DM | ||
| Aspartate | 2.89 ± 0.07 | 2.00 ± 0.05 |
| Alanine | 1.36 ± 0.03 | 0.97 ± 0.02 |
| Cysteine | 0.64 ± 0.02 | 0.34 ± 0.01 |
| Glutamate | 4.68 ± 0.15 | 1.07 ± 0.02 |
| Glycine | 0.60 ± 0.03 | 0.98 ± 0.01 |
| Proline | 1.64 ± 0.04 | 1.14 ± 0.02 |
| Serine | 1.47 ± 0.05 | 0.99 ± 0.03 |