Abstract
The influence of dietary factors and gastrointestinal disturbances on the prothrombin response to coumarin anticoagulants has often been reported (1). Relatively short periods of starvation can induce significant exaggerations in the response to these agents (2). Whether this effect is a function of low caloric intake, or an acute deficiency in a specific nutritional component is not known, The present study compares the effects of a balanced diet, starvation and diets free from carbohydrate or protein on the prothrombin response to the anticoagulant, acenocoumarin, in guinea pigs. The data indicate that modest amounts of dietary protein will prevent the exaggerated response resulting from short periods of starvation, whereas an equivalent amount of carbohydrate will not.
Methods. Non-albino male guinea pigs weighing 250-350 g were fed Rockland Guinea Pig diet (Tekland Inc., Monmouth, Ill.) supplemented with lettuce and water ad libitum until initiation of the experiment. Each animal consumed 25 to 40 g per day. On experimental days 1 through 3, feeding was confined to the pattern described below. Special mixes were prepared by General Biochemicals, Chagrin Falls, Ohio, and contained 15% nonnutritive fiber, 7.3% corn oil, and 9.3% salts, vitamins, and minerals. The carbohydrate mix included 15.0% corn starch, 10.3% sucrose, and 42.8% glucose, while the protein mix included 68.1% casein. Diets were fed by hand in the form of 10 capsules (Parke, Davis No. 3) twice a day, each containing 200 mg of pulverized food (total of 4 g per day) and was regularly observed to be consumed in toto. Acenocoumarin (25 mg/kg i.p.) was administered on days 2 and 3, and animals were sacrificed on the morning of day 4. Cardiac blood specimens were obtained and studied for clotting activity by methods previously described(2).
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