Food intake of suckling rats after administration of glucose and amino acids.

The changes of food intake after administration of glucose or a mixture of amino acids were determined in rat pups from the 5th to the 23rd day of life. The milk intake was significantly reduced 90 min after glucose treatment in 17 day-old pups, while decreased food intake after injection of aminoacids was observed only after the 23rd day of life. It is being concluded that the regulation of food intake in correlation to the blood concentrations of various key metabolic factors develops gradually during the suckling period, depending on the development of the CNS and on changes in diet composition.