Abstract
Gavage, water bottle, and diet incorporation are 3 dosing methods used orally to administer test compounds to rodents. These 3 methods were compared in mice to determine which represented the most quantitative delivery system. For dietary incorporation, a highmoisture bolus form of NIH-31 rodent meal was developed using hydroxypropyl methylcellulose as an autoclave-stable binding agent. A highmoisture bolus was selected to increase the acceptability of the dosed diet and to promote quantitative consumption through reduced wastage. The test compound used was D-xylose, a pentose sugar that may be quantitatively detected, colorimetrically, in urine following oral dosing. Six male and 6 female B6D2F1 mice were placed in metabolism cages and dosed with a known quantity of D-xylose by each of the 3 methods. Urine was collected before and after each method of administration and analysed for total D-xylose; the per cent recovery was based upon the amount of D-xylose consumed. Quantitative consumption was apparently greatest for water bottle dosing with an average recovery of 56·0% of the original D-xylose dose. High-moisture bolus incorporation ranked second with 50·0% D-xylose recovery, and gavage was third with 41·0% D-xylose recovery.