AJP - Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, Vol 235, Issue 1 29-R34, Copyright © 1978 by American Physiological Society
Accuracy of the regulation of caloric ingestion in the rhesus monkey
P. R. McHugh and T. H. Moran
In seven male monkeys, Macaca mulatta, the infusion of nutrients into the
stomach just prior to or 20 h before a 4-h feeding period reduced the
feeding by an amount comparable to the calories infused. Pure
carbohydrates, fat, protein, and mixtures were employed as infusions and
given in a random fashion over a caloric range of 75-300 kcal. In a second
series of experiments, monkeys were partially fasted on 1 day and in this
way deprived of 75, 150, 300, or 450 kcal. On successive days, they overate
to compensate for this deprivation. The smaller deprivations (75 and 150
kcal) were corrected on the first recovery day. The 300-kcal deprivation
required 2 days to be corrected while the 450-kcal deficit was only
partially restored. These experiments demonstrate the capacities of the
monkey to respond with precision to caloric supply and deprivation so as to
maintain a constant caloric intake.
