DEVELOPMENT AND JUSTIFICATION OF ALIMENTARY DYSTROPHY EXPERIMENTAL MODEL IN RATS

Nowadays alimentary dystrophy (dystrophia alimentaris), which can develop for a variety of reasons, remains an urgent problem in modern medicine, particularly in patients with head and neck tumors. Several methods of experimental food deprivation are known today (Kosmatykh T.A. et al. 2001, Khoroshykh N.V. 2010, Gembarovskyi M.V. 2013, Koropetska N.Yu. et al., 2015) but all of them have certain limitations which make impossible the comparison between the experimental study results and clinical data. The aim of the study was to develop an experimental rat model of alimentary dystrophy based on partial food deprivation which would allow to identify the limits and levels of compensated states of dystrophy with possible restoration of protein metabolism. Influence of complete and partial alimentary deprivation on animals' physical condition was experimentally studied on 40 male rats divided into four groups. Group I included rats kept on complete food deprivation; group II - rats on partial deprivation (1/2 of daily diet); group III - rats receiving 1/3 of daily diet; group IV - intact rats (control group) on regular daily diet. Changes in animals' weight during study period were assessed. After completion of food deprivation period, behavioral activity of the animals was registered using the standard open field test; ambulation and emotional status of subjects were studied. After withdrawal of the subjects from experiment, biochemical parameters of blood (albumin, total protein, glucose levels) were evaluated as indicators of general condition of the animals. An optimal model of alimentary dystrophy has been developed which seems to be beneficial in studying various schemes of supplementary nutrition. It is hoped that the results of this study could be used in developing management strategy for correction of supplementary nutrition in case of alimentary dystrophy.