| Gastrointestinal permeability and mucosal function testing is a sensitive method for the detection of functional abnormalities of the gastrointestinal tract. Testing typically involves oral administration of two or more marker molecules, often saccharides, and subsequent quantitative measurement of these molecules in urine. This thesis describes the development of a protocol for such testing in healthy cats. Three combinations of five saccharides were administered orally as a solution to determine kinetics of urinary recovery and to determine the influence of one saccharide on the urinary recovery of another saccharide. Urine collection for 10 or 12 hours after oral sugar solution administration is recommended to accurately estimate the cumulative amount of each sugar recovered. Urinary recoveries of saccharides in cats differed from recoveries in dogs and human beings. The development of diarrhea after sugar administration may have precluded an accurate assessment of the effect of one sugar on the recovery of another. |
