Food deprivation and surfactant in adult rats

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Abstract
It was determined if fasting (80% reduction of food intake for 72 h) diminishes airway or tissue disaturated phosphatidylcholine (DSPC) relative to alveolar surface area, or alters the lung response to overventilation. The lungs of fasted rats were lighter, but the size and recoil of saline-filled lungs, and the alveolar surface area of lungs fixed in glutaraldehyde, were the same in fed and fasted rats. In their airways, fed rats had 0.32 .+-. 0.01 .mu.g DSPC/cm2 of alveolar surface; fasted rats had 0.28 .+-. 0.02 .mu.g DSPC/cm2 (P < 0.05) (surface area determined at 20 cmH2O transpulmonary pressure). Fasted rats had 13% less tissue DSPC/cm2 alveolar surface than fed rats (P < 0.01). After 1 h of mechanically produced overventilation the unequal amounts of airway, but not tissue, DSPC were eliminated and pulmonary compliance was similar in both groups. Food reduction decreases the quantity of airway and tissue DSPC/cm2 of alveolar surface but does not increase lung recoil of spontaneously breathing rats or overventilated rats.

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