Parenteral (glucose or glucose-lipid) vs enteral repletion in malnourished primates: a controlled crossover study

Nutritional repletion with glucose-based total parenteral nutrition (TPN), mixed-substrate (58% lipid, 42% glucose) TPN, and mixed-substrate total enteral nutrition (TEN) was studied in four adult male chair-adapted primates using a crossover design. After 10 d nutritional depletion animals were repleted for 10 d with one of three isocaloric isonitrogenous diets. TPN Diets I and II were identical except that I provided all nonprotein calories as glucose while II provided 58% nonprotein calories as lipid and 42% as glucose. Animals were randomized to I or II as their first repletion treatment. The 20-d depletion-repletion cycle was repeated with the other TPN diet after a 30-d rest period of caged free-feeding. After another 30-d rest period, animals underwent a third 10-d depletion and were repleted with 10 d of TEN (Diet III, identical to II in composition). The three diets resulted in similar weight gain, positive nitrogen balance and fluid balance, and increase in total iron-binding capacity.