Use of a high-protein diet in the management of feline diabetes mellitus.

A study was conducted to evaluate the clinical response of diabetic cats to a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet. Adult cats with diabetes mellitus of at least 4 months' duration were recruited and fed a high-fiber, moderate-fat canned diet for 1 to 2 months during the standardization period. All cats were then transitioned to a high-protein, low-carbohydrate canned diet for a 3-month treatment period. Analyses of treatment effect included hematology, serum biochemistry, fructosamine, lipid profile, and postprandial glucose curves. Cats were also monitored for changes in body weight, appetite, activity level, urinary habits, and insulin requirements. Nine cats completed the study protocol. All cats remained generally stable throughout the treatment period, although there was a slight overall improvement in activity. Insulin levels were decreased in eight of the nine cats when transitioned from the high-fiber diet to the high-protein diet, and insulin injections were completely stopped in three of the cats. Results of regression analysis indicated that exogenous insulin could be reduced by over 50% with no loss in glucose control, as measured by serum fructosamine. Results of this study support the use of a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet in the management of cats with diabetes mellitus.

Effects of maternal vitamin E and selenium status during the perinatal period on age-related changes in tissue concentration of vitamin E in rat pups.

Long-Evans hooded female rats previously acclimated to one of four experimental diets differing in their vitamin E (E) and selenium (Se) contents were used in these studies. The basal diet (-E -Se) was marginal in E (15 IU/kg) and Se (0.03 mg/kg) content. Three additional diets, -E, +Se, +E-Se and +E +Se were prepared by supplementing the basal diet with dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate to contain 150 IU/kg or with sodium selenite to contain 0.5 mg/kg, as required. The rats were mated and the pups born were used to provide plasma, heart, lung and liver tissue for E analyses at postpartum intervals from birth (prior to nursing) to 21 days of age. Differences in Se nutrition of the dams during the perinatal period did not affect the E content of tissues of the rat pups. There were no significant differences (P > 0.05) in E content of plasma or liver tissue at birth in rat pups regardless of the maternal E status. Heart and lung tissue, however, were significantly higher (P < 0.05) in E concentration at birth in pups whose dams were fed the +E diets. Rat pups nursing -E dams had consistently low E content in each of the tissues throughout the postpartum period which did not differ from levels determined prior to nursing. Pups nursing +E dams had elevated E concentration in each of the tissues during the postpartum period. Liver tissue provided the most remarkable response in that E concentration increased approximately 30-fold within 4 days postpartum and then decreased abruptly. The results of these studies suggest a differential transfer of E to rat tissues during gestation. Net placental transfer of E to fetal liver appeared to be very low and was not influenced by marked differences in maternal dietary E. In contrast, preferential incorporation into heart and lung tissue during gestation was shown by the data. In all tissues, increased E content following birth was attributed to ingestion of colostrum and milk containing elevated amounts of the vitamin.

Effects of maternal vitamin E and selenium status during the perinatal period on age-related changes in heart, lung and liver microsomal lipid peroxidation in rat pups.

Female Long-Evans rats of breeding age were acclimated to one of four experimental diets differing in their vitamin E (E) and selenium (Se) contents. These animals were bred and the offspring produced were nursed by their respective dams from birth through 21 days postpartum. Rat pups were killed at postpartum intervals of 4, 9, 14 and 21 days and heart, lung and liver tissue used for isolation of microsomes. Microsomes were used for quantitation of E content as well as for assays of lipid peroxidation (thiobarbituric acid reactive products formation) using an ascorbate/ADP nonenzymatic assay system. Microsomal E content was lower in heart and lung tissues of rat pups at each postpartum interval compared with maternal levels. Liver microsomal E was higher in rat pups at day 4 postpartum compared with maternal levels. Significant differences (P < 0.05) in microsomal E content of rat pup tissues were associated with maternal vitamin E status during the perinatal period and not to differences in dietary Se. In vitro lipid peroxidation was highest in rat pups nursing dams of low E status, the magnitude of which was greatest in heart and liver microsomes. Lung microsomes, in contrast, peroxidized at very low rates compared with heart and liver microsomes. These effects were independent of maternal Se status. Microsomal lipid peroxidation in tissues of rat pups was lowest at the earliest postpartum interval studied (4 days) and, in general, increased with postpartum age. Reduced glutathione did not inhibit lipid peroxidation in heart or lung microsomes but was effective in this respect in liver microsomes of rat pups as early as 4 days postpartum.