Abstract
Histochemical studies of intestinal biopsies in 8 patients with severe iron deficiency anemia revealed that 7 had absent lactase and 1 absent sucrase, whereas maltase was normal in all biopsies. The lactose absorption test was abnormal in 3 of 4 patients in which this test was done. This observation led us to study intestinal disaccharidase activity in iron deficient rats in the post-weaning period. Twenty-two Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into two groups. Group I was fed an iron deficient diet from weaning (21 days) to 56 days and thereafter was given intramuscular iron. Group II was fed a control iron sufficient diet. At 21 days of age, 3 rats from each group were sacrificed and showed no significant difference in their hematologic values and in the disaccharidase activity. At 56 days, 4 rats of each group were sacrificed and Group I had a significantly lower hemoglobin level and lactase activity (7.0 ± 1.2 gm/dl and 0.0003 ± 0.0004 IU/mg protein) compared to Group II animals (13.8 ± 0.6 gm/dl and 0.135 ± 0.042 IU/mg protein, respectively). There was no significant difference in intestinal sucrase and maltase in the two groups. At 63 days, 4 rats in each group were sacrificed and no significant differences were observed in these parameters. This reveals that in some iron deficient children and in rats made iron deficient from 21 to 56 days of age lactase deficiency develops which is reversible by iron therapy.
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Philip, L., Gungor, K., Abdul, K. et al. 625 TRANSIENT. LACTASE DEFICIENCY IN IRON DEFICIENCY ANEMIA. Pediatr Res 12 (Suppl 4), 468 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197804001-00630
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197804001-00630