Adaptation of canine pancreatic enzymes to diet composition

1. Lipase, protease and amylase activity in canine pancreatic juice were determined during the feeding of basal, high fat, high protein and high carbohydrate diets for 3-week periods.2. The level of lipase in pancreatic juice was significantly augmented by increasing the dietary intakes of fat (P < 0.05) and carbohydrate (P < 0.05) but was not affected by increasing the protein intake.3. Protease activity was highly augmented by increasing the intake of protein (P < 0.01), was less strongly augmented by increasing carbohydrate (P < 0.10), but was not affected by the level of dietary fat ingested.4. Enzyme activities in canine pancreatic juice were modified by the nature of the diet on which the animals were maintained and the response for a given enzyme may be influenced by more than one dietary constituent.