Hoof Nutrition Intelligence is a twice-a-month web segment that is designed to add to the education of footcare professionals when it comes to effectively feeding the hoof. The goal of this web-exclusive feature is to zero in on specific areas of hoof nutrition and avoid broad-based articles that simply look at the overall equine feeding situation.
Below you will find the latest question and answer installment that you can share with your footcare clients.
Q: Can you explain the differences between the two most important sulfur-bearing amino acids when it comes to having quality hooves?
By Kentucky Equine Research staff
A: Research has shown a clear difference between the distribution of two sulfur-bearing amino acids in the keratinizing epidermis of the hoof.
Cystine was located mainly in keratinocytes of the keratogenous zone in the matrix and in the nucleated keratinocytes that formed the incompletely keratinized basal part of the primary epidermal laminae. These covered the lateral surface of the outer, fully keratinized part of those laminae.
Methionine was located primarily in the stratum basale and in the stratum spinosum of the matrix and in the secondary epidermal laminae of the laminar layer.
The pathway that converts methionine to cysteine is thought to be imperative in the production of quality hoof.
Kentucky Equine Research is a nutrition consulting company located in Versailles, Ky.
Hoof Nutrition Intelligence is brought to you by W.F. Young Co. (Absorbine). 
Like many significant achievements, Absorbine® grew out of humble beginnings—and through the tenacity of someone willing to question the status quo. In this case, it was a young woman in late 19th-century Massachusetts: Mary Ida Young. Her husband, Wilbur Fenelon Young, was an enterprising piano deliveryman who relied on the couple’s team of horses to make deliveries throughout the Northeast. Inspired by Mary Ida and Wilbur’s vision, Absorbine® has continued to add innovative products throughout the years — products used every day by horse owners around the world. Which is why, since 1892, we’ve been The Horse World’s Most Trusted Name®.
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