Intestinal transport of monosaccharides and amino acids during postnatal development of mink

Intestinal development is typically studied using omnivores. For comparative purposes, we examined an altricial carnivore, the mink (Mustela vison). In mink, intestinal dimensions increase up to 8 wk after birth and then remain constant (length) or decrease (mass) into maturity despite continuing gains in body mass. Rates of glucose and fructose transport decline after birth for intact tissues but increase for brush-border membrane vesicles (BBMV). Rates of absorption for five amino acids that are substrates for the acidic (aspartate), basic (lysine), neutral (leucine and methionine), and imino acid (proline) carriers increase between birth and 24 h for intact tissues before declining, but increase after 2 wk for BBMV. The proportion of BBMV amino acid uptake that is Na+-dependent increases during development but for aspartate is nearly 100% at all ages. Tracer uptake by BBMV can be inhibited by 100 mmol/l of unlabeled amino acid, except for lysine. BBMV uptake of the dipeptide glycyl-sarcosine does not differ between ages, is not Na+ dependent, and is only partially inhibited by 100 mmol/l unlabeled dipeptide. Despite the ability to rapidly and efficiently digest high dietary loads of protein, rates of amino acid and peptide absorption are not markedly higher than those of other mammals.