The effect of N-acetyl-L-cysteine on the viscosity of ileal neobladder mucus.

N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) proved to be an effective mucolytic in pulmonary secretions. Our goal was to investigate the in vitro effect of NAC on viscosity of ileal neobladder mucus. The urine of a patient with an ileal neobladder was collected during the first 7 days postoperatively and stored in a refrigerator. After precipitation, the urine was decanted. The residue was stirred to a homogeneous suspension. To samples of 4.5 ml mucus, 0.5 ml NAC 10% was added. To the control sample, 0.5 ml water was added. The samples were incubated in a water bath at 37 degrees C for 5, 30 and 60 min. Viscosity was measured in the Bohlin VOR Rheometer. The viscosity of the ileal neobladder mucus decreased quickly after incubating with NAC 10%. Viscosity increased slightly after I h of incubation. The viscosity in the control sample was higher than in the other incubated samples. NAC was found to decrease the viscosity of ileal neobladder mucus, supporting the in vivo experience that NAC can be useful in patients with an ileal neobladder to facilitate the evacuation of mucus by decreasing viscosity.

Ileal digestibility and urinary excretion of D-xylose and L-arabinose in ileostomized adult roosters.

An experiment with ileostomized adult roosters was conducted to determine the ileal digestibility and urinary excretion of D-xylose and L-arabinose. As a reference, D-glucose was included in the experiment. The sugars were tested at graded dietary levels of 2.5, 5.0, 7.5, and 10.0%. Mean ileal digestibility of D-glucose and D-xylose was nearly 100%. Ileal digestibility of L-arabinose decreased linearly (P less than .05) with increasing dose level. The corresponding ileal digestibilities for L-arabinose at dietary levels of 2.5, 5.0, 7.5, and 10.0% were 95.5, 93.6, 80.3, and 74.6%. Both pentose sugars were partly excreted in the urine. The extent of this urinary excretion in percentage of intake increased linearly (P less than .05) as the dietary level increased. In roosters fed the 2.5% D-xylose diet, 7.2% of the D-xylose consumed appeared in the urine. This level increased to 20.2% when roosters were fed a diet containing 10.0% D-xylose. Corresponding values for L-arabinose at these dietary inclusion levels were 8.7 and 16.6%.