The Role of the Gastrointestinal Tract in Nutrient Delivery contains the proceedings of the third annual Bristol-Myers Symposium on Nutrition Research, held on December 1-2, 1983 in Washington, D.C. Contributors focus on the knowledge and research findings concerning the role of the gastrointestinal tract in nutrient delivery. This text is organized into 15 chapters and addresses topics such as gastrointestinal motility; hormonal regulation of growth and function; the mechanisms of digestion and absorption; and the diverse effects of intestinal contents on nutrient absorption and antigenic response. The discussion begins with an overview of the gastrointestinal tract, with emphasis on factors that affect the growth of gastrointestinal mucosa and the implications for nutrition. This book then turns to kinetic and biochemical parameters related to the development of several diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. The reader is also introduced to the basic aspects of organization of the systems in which peptides act as regulators of digestion; the role of endogenous prostaglandins in the gastrointestinal tract; and gastric secretion. A chapter on the age-related functions of digestive tract organs concludes the book. This book will be of value to physicians and scientists as well as students and researchers who have an interest in the crucial role of the gastrointestinal tract in converting food into the nutrients the body uses to sustain its functions.
As a result of the key advances made more than 30 years ago, specifically the ability to isolate islets of Langerhans from the pancreas, the ability to measure insulin accurately by immunoasay, and the development of microchemical techniques for studying cells and their components, many research volumes, symposium reports, and original papers have been produced. This explosion of interest has probably had at least three stimuli: 1. the inherent scientific interest in understanding secretion of the pancreatic ß-cell2. the ß-cells relevance to a very common disease3. the availability of funding from specific sources related to diabetes research, for instance, Juvenile Diabetes Foundation International and the British Diabetic Association. As a result of all this activity, detailed scientific literature including research reviews are readily available. Surprisingly enough, there are relatively few attempts to summarize this great bulk of knowledge in a way that is accessible to the newcomer to this field and this book is intended to bridge this gap.
