Pectin supplementation of the diet also influenced
other aspects of the hindgut flora, increasing the rate
of ammonia formation by faecal incubations in vztro
and its concentration in the freshly voided stool.
Ammonia is formed in the large intestinal contents
following microbial degradation of urea or amino
a ~ i d s , ’ , ’ a~n.d~ h~a s been proposed to play a role in
the promotion of disease in the Pectin
ingestion also appeared to be linked to a pronounced
‘carry-over’ effect, since certain faecal parameters
during the subsequent control period (e.g.
bacterial numbers, stool output, ammonia concentration)
returned values lower than the other control
collections. Possibly, three weeks for the following
control diet was not long enough to ensure that
gut function had returned to normal, and may have
lead to an underestimation of the influence of wheat
bran on the faecal parameters measured.