Table 3.
Effect of feeding control 1 or two functional foods (FF1 and FF2) 2 for six months (T6) on body composition, renal function, and serum metabolite concentrations in senior-adult cats 3 (least square mean, LSM ± standard error of the mean, SEM) compared with their baseline values (T0), and values for young-adult cats 4 (LSM).
| Variables | Young-Adult Cats | Senior-Adult Cats at Baseline (T0) and after Feeding for Six months (T6) | SEM | p–Values 5 Senior-Adult Cats vs. Young-Adult Cats | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Senior-Adult Cats (T0) | Control (T6) | FF1 (T6) | FF2 (T6) | Senior-Adult Cats (T0) | Control (T6) | FF1 (T6) | FF2 (T6) | |||
| Body Mass and Composition: | ||||||||||
| Body Weight, kg 6 | 4.53 | 4.47 | 4.44 | 4.63 | 4.20 | 0.18 | 0.66 | 0.76 | 0.70 | 0.25 |
| Lean Body Mass, kg 6 | 3.70 | 3.40 | 3.33 | 3.57 | 3.60 * | 0.02 | 0.06 | 0.09 | 0.53 | 0.52 |
| Fat Body Mass, kg 6 | 0.70 | 0.96 | 0.99 | 0.95 | 0.53 * | 0.11 | 0.03 | 0.04 | 0.08 | 0.21 |
| Lean Body, % | 81.6 | 76.9 | 75.9 | 78.2 | 84.9 | 1.9 | 0.02 | 0.02 | 0.14 | 0.16 |
| Fat Body,% | 14.4 | 20.6 | 21.6 | 19.2 * | 12.4 * | 1.79 | <0.01 | <0.01 | 0.04 | 0.39 |
| Renal Function: | ||||||||||
| Glomerular Filtration Rate, mL/min/kg 7 | 2.08 7 | 1.92 | 2.09 * | 2.32 * | 2.13 * | 0.13 | 0.09 | 0.91 | 0.21 | 0.87 |
| Serum Metabolites: | ||||||||||
| Creatinine, mg/dL | 1.31 | 1.22 | 1.25 | 0.99 * | 1.17 | 0.049 | 0.11 | <0.01 | <0.01 | <0.01 |
| Symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA), μg/dL | 11.5 | 11.1 | 10.3 * | 9.1 * | 10.8 | 0.4 | 0.79 | 0.01 | <0.01 | 0.15 |
| Blood urea nitrogen (BUN), mg/dL | 21.82 | 20.33 | 21.30 * | 22.35 * | 23.21 * | 0.45 | 0.02 | 0.56 | 0.55 | 0.12 |
| Total Protein, mg/dL | 6.71 | 6.68 | 6.97 | 7.37 * | 7.42 * | 0.14 | 0.67 | 0.17 | <0.01 | <0.01 |
| Albumin, mg/dL | 3.31 | 2.82 | 2.67 * | 2.78 | 2.68 | 0.07 | <0.01 | <0.01 | <0.01 | <0.01 |
| Prostaglandin, pg/dL | NA 8 | 162 | 116 * | 94 * | 149 | 8.5 | NA | NA | NA | NA |
1 Control food was prepared by Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc. and was similar to the pre-trial food in protein and fat content, but had added fiber, fish oil, α-tocopheryl acetate and ascorbyl monophosphate. 2 The two functional foods differed from control food in degree of supplementation with functional lipids, botanicals (fruit and vegetables), as well as pea and chicken protein concentrations. 3 Age range: 10.7 to 14.0 years; n = 15 (control), n = 15 (functional food (FF)1), n = 14 (FF2). 4 Age range: 2.1 to 4.9 years; n = 20. 5 Differences were assessed by comparing all senior-adult cats at baseline (T0) to young-adult cats, and cats fed each of the individual foods (control, FF1, FF2) at T6 to young-adult cats, by t-test. Values at T6 with (*) are significantly (p < 0.05) different compared with their baseline values. 6 Body mass and composition were determined by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scan analysis. 7 Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was calculated in the young-adult cats using a prediction equation which was based on data from Hall et al. [2] that used a regression analysis and the statistically significant variables of age, body weight, and symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA) and serum creatinine (Cr) concentrations: GFR = 3.467 – SDMA × 0.03323 − Cr × 0.442757 − age × 0.035227 – mass (kg) × 0.06765. 8 Not analyzed.