Biomaterial Database

Energy metabolism and protein balance in growing rats fed different levels of dietary fibre and protein. 2003

H Jørgensen, and X Q Zhao, and P K Theil, and V M Gabert, and K E Bach Knudsen

Danish Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Animal Nutrition and Physiology, Research Centre Foulum, Tjele, Denmark. Henry.Jorgensen@agrsci.dk

A study was performed to investigate the effect of different levels of dietary fibre (DF) and dietary protein on visceral organ size, digestibility, nitrogen balance and energy metabolism in rats. Thirty-six male Wistar rats, initial body weight about 76 g were used in a factorial design consisting of three levels of DF (low, 100 g/kg DM: medium, 250 g/kg DM and high, 290 g/kg DM) and two levels of dietary protein (low, 120 g/kg DM and high, 223 g/kg DM). The added fibre source was soybean hulls and Danish fish meal was used as sole source of dietary protein. Measurements of gas-exchange were done on six rats (one group) while urine and faeces were collected individually. The ratio of food/empty body gain increased (P<0.05) with increasing DF and decreasing levels of dietary protein. The weight of the digestive tract was larger (P<0.05) in rats fed the high fibre diet than in those fed the low fibre diet. The digestibility of nutrients and energy decreased linearly with increasing level of soybean fibre (P<0.05). An increased intake of DF was associated with a concomitant loss of protein and energy to faeces. The microbial degradation of NSP and other unabsorbed carbohydrates caused considerably changes in N metabolism of the colon. In rats fed the low protein diets increased levels of DF decreased N excretion in urine and increased N excretion in faeces, while the ratio of retained/digested protein remained constant. When rats were fed the high protein diet protein retention dropped in response to DF both absolute and relative to digested amount, indicating that energy intake could be a limiting factor. Heat production as a percentage of metabolizable energy (HP/ME) was higher (P<0.05) in rats fed the low protein diet than in rats fed the high protein diet, but no significant difference was found among DF levels.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008297	Male		Males
D009584	Nitrogen	An element with the atomic symbol N, atomic number 7, and atomic weight [14.00643; 14.00728]. Nitrogen exists as a diatomic gas and makes up about 78% of the earth's atmosphere by volume. It is a constituent of proteins and nucleic acids and found in all living cells.
D009929	Organ Size	The measurement of an organ in volume, mass, or heaviness.	Organ Volume,Organ Weight,Size, Organ,Weight, Organ
D011897	Random Allocation	A process involving chance used in therapeutic trials or other research endeavor for allocating experimental subjects, human or animal, between treatment and control groups, or among treatment groups. It may also apply to experiments on inanimate objects.	Randomization,Allocation, Random
D001833	Body Temperature Regulation	The processes of heating and cooling that an organism uses to control its temperature.	Heat Loss,Thermoregulation,Regulation, Body Temperature,Temperature Regulation, Body,Body Temperature Regulations,Heat Losses,Loss, Heat,Losses, Heat,Regulations, Body Temperature,Temperature Regulations, Body,Thermoregulations
D004043	Dietary Fiber	The remnants of plant cell walls that are resistant to digestion by the alimentary enzymes of man. It comprises various polysaccharides and lignins.	Fiber, Dietary,Roughage,Wheat Bran,Bran, Wheat,Brans, Wheat,Dietary Fibers,Fibers, Dietary,Roughages,Wheat Brans
D004044	Dietary Proteins	Proteins obtained from foods. They are the main source of the ESSENTIAL AMINO ACIDS.	Proteins, Dietary,Dietary Protein,Protein, Dietary
D004063	Digestion	The process of breakdown of food for metabolism and use by the body.
D004734	Energy Metabolism	The chemical reactions involved in the production and utilization of various forms of energy in cells.	Bioenergetics,Energy Expenditure,Bioenergetic,Energy Expenditures,Energy Metabolisms,Expenditure, Energy,Expenditures, Energy,Metabolism, Energy,Metabolisms, Energy
D005243	Feces	Excrement from the INTESTINES, containing unabsorbed solids, waste products, secretions, and BACTERIA of the DIGESTIVE SYSTEM.