Effects of the consumption of fully cooked red kidney beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) on the growth rate of rats and the morphology of the gut wall
1991
McPherson, L.
Over an 8-week period six rats were fed a fixed quantity of a diet consisting of a purified diet (AIN76A) into which red kidney beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L), previously cooked at 100 degrees C for 30 min, dried and ground, were incorporated at the level of 100 g kg-1. Another six rats were fed AIN76A as a control diet. Weekly weight, weight gain and efficiency of feed conversion were noted for each rat. Six days prior to the end of the experiment, faeces were collected daily from each rat and the moisture, protein and lipid content as well as the bacterial flora of the pooled sample for each rat were determined. At the end of the 8-week period the rats were anaethetised with ether and decapitated. Two areas of the gut wall were examined histologically, and the serum was analysed for protein, albumin, globulin, glucose, cholesterol, urea N, creatinine, calcium, phosphorus, alkaline phosphatase, aspartine aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, lipase, total bilirubin, sodium, potassium, chlorine and carbon dioxide. Whereas no damage to the gut wall of the control animals was observed, varying amounts of damage were evident in the test animals. Serum cholesterol in the test animals was also significantly lower compared with the controls.
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