Postnatal development of the exocrine pancreas in suckling goat kids

A total of 25 preruminant Granadina breed gears were used. They were bottle-fed goat milk ad libitum from postnatal day 3 to 28. Until the age of 3 d, kids were fed colostrum. Body weight, pancreas weight, total protein concentration, enzyme activities in pancreatic tissue and hormone concentrations (cortisol, gastrin, T-3 and T-4) were determined at 3, 7, 14, 21 and 28 d of age. Our results show that the rates of pancreatic synthesis and secretion of chymotrypsin are well developed at birth in the kid, and may compensate for possible deficiencies in gastric and/or enterocytes intracellular proteolysis. In week 4, there was a marked increase in amylase activity, change that can be attributed to the beginning of the transitional period known as weaning. The significant increase in circulating concentration of cortisol during week 4 suggests the involvement of corticosteroid as a mediator of pancreatic development at weaning. Changes in blood levels of this hormone are believed to be important in the expression of amylase in the neonatal period. However; T-3-T-4 blood levels remained unchanged from d 3 to 28, suggesting that, in the kid, these hormones appear to have no clear influence upon the postnatal development of the exocrine pancreas.