Lf110 bca analyzer

Food and fluid intakes (difference in the weight of the food containers and water bottles) were measured twice per week. Body weight and body composition were assessed weekly using NMR minispec (LF110 BCA analyzer, Bruker). Body weight, lean body mass and body fat mass were expressed as gross weight. In order to minimise the impact of the variations in initial body weight within the groups, weight gain was presented by determining the changes from baseline. Energy stored was calculated as the energy retained in the body per 100 kJ of energy consumed (kJ/100 kJ), while energy expenditure was estimated from the total energy intake and changes in body mass and composition^{(14 )}.
Livers were freeze-dried (FreeZone 6 Freeze Dryer, LABCONCO) for 48 h, and hepatic fat content was determined by lipid extraction with petroleum ether (40–60°C) as solvent using an ANKOM XT10 extractor (ANKOM Technology). All determinations were carried out in duplicate.

Following the acclimation period, rats were maintained on regular chow for an additional three days to obtain a baseline measure of food intake, body weight, and composition. Henceforth, 24-h food intake was measured once a week. Body weight and body composition were measured weekly using a minispec LF 110 BCA Analyzer (Bruker Corp., Billerica, MA, USA).
Following their recovery from surgery, animals were randomly divided into three experimental groups: Chow/C (consuming rodent chow and fistula not opened/manipulated = control; n = 3), Chow/F (consuming rodent chow and cecal content collected via fistula; n = 3), and HFD/F (consuming high-fat diet and cecal content collected via fistula; n = 3). Both the Chow/C and Chow/F groups remained on standard pellets of rat chow, and the HFD/F cohort was switched to a 45% fat, 20% sucrose diet (Research Diet #D12451, New Brunswick, NJ, USA). Rats were maintained on their respective diets for seven weeks. During the last three weeks on their respective diet, the Chow/F and HFD/F groups had their fistulas opened and closed three times a week to gauge the animals’ behavioral response to the manipulation and inspect the area.