Short-chain fatty acids and water in the hindgut contents and feces of rats after hindgut bypass surgery.

Abstract

Omnivorous experimental animals with different levels of short-chain fatty acids in hindgut contents or in feces were established by surgical bypass of the colon and/or the cecum. Levels of short-chain fatty acids, amounts of luminal contents, and the water contents in these animals were compared. Regional variations in water absorption and retention of luminal contents are likely to be major factors in the regulation of hindgut functions.