Abstract
The nutritional effect of a milk protein hydrolysate (MPH) consisting of di-and tripeptides was compared with that of milk protein (MP) in Mann-Williamson (MW) rats which had been treated surgically to bypass bile and pancreatic secretions into the ileum. During 3 days, from the 3rd to the 5th day after the operation, the biological value and nitrogen balance in MW rats fed the MPH diet (MPH group) were significantly higher than those in rats fed the MP diet (MP group). The level of 3-methylhistidine and the ratio of 3-methylhistidine/creatinine in the urine of the MPH group were significantly lower than those in the MP group. Furthermore, serum protein, total protein and albumin levels in the MPH group were significantly higher than those in the MP group. These results indicate that MPH may be utilized more effectively than MP in the absence of bile and pancreatic juice in the small intestine.
