Tryptophan is an indispensable AA that is often limiting for growth in pigs fed corn-soybean meal-based diets. Tryptophan may act as a regulator of feed intake by enhancing serotonin signaling in the brain, because Trp is a precursor for serotonin. High Trp intake increases feed intake, and this is partly attributed to increased serotonin synthesis. Availability of dietary Trp in the brain is considered the rate-limiting step in hypothalamic serotonin synthesis. However, to be transported into the brain, Trp competes with other large neutral AA such as Val, Leu, Ile, Tyr, and Phe for a common transporter (L-type AA transporter 1) to cross the blood-brain barrier.