The use of protein hydrolysate improves the protein intestinal absorption in undernourished mice infected with Schistosoma mansoni

• Main Authors: Coutinho Eridan M., Ferreira Haroldo S., Assunção Monica L., Carvalho Sandra L., Oliveira Sheilla A., Francelino Andréa A.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical (SBMT) 2002
• Subjects: Undernutrition; Schistosomiasis mansoni; Casein hydrolysate; Intestinal protein absorption; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Arctic
• Online Access: https://doaj.org/article/04592cfdf2f8403c82d519a063781ed0

Patients residing in endemic areas for schistosomiasis in Brazil are usually undernourished and when they develop the hepatosplenic clinical form of the disease should usually receive hospital care, many of them being in need of nutritional rehabilitation before specific treatment can be undertaken. In the mouse model, investigations carried out in our laboratory detected a reduced aminoacid uptake in undernourished animals which is aggravated by a superimposed infection with Schistosoma mansoni. However, in well-nourished infected mice no dysfunction occurs. In this study, we tried to improve the absorptive intestinal performance of undernourished mice infected with S. mansoni by feeding them with hydrolysed casein instead of whole casein. The values obtained for the coefficient of protein intestinal absorption (cpia) among well-nourished mice were above 90% (either hydrolysed or whole protein). In undernourished infected mice, however, the cpia improved significantly after feeding them with hydrolysed casein, animals reaching values close to those obtained in well-nourished infected mice.