Aminoacidemia after ingestion of protein hydrolysate produced from poultry carcasses: A comparison against whey protein in a randomized, double-blinded cross-over study in healthy young and old individuals

This study investigated the aminoacidemia after ingestion of a poultry protein hydrolysate (PPH) and whey protein in healthy young and old participants. Protein-drinks were also digested using the INFOGEST static in vitro digestion model to simulate gastrointestinal changes in young and old adults. In fasted state, 10 young (20-40y) and 10 old (70-80y) ingested PPH or whey as a 20 g protein-drink and blood samples were collected. Plasma leucine concentration increased more when ingesting whey than PPH (young 62 +/- 27 vs. 48 +/- 27%, old 94 +/- 57 vs. 66 +/- 26%) but the peak concentration was reached faster after drinking PPH (p < 0.05). The in vitro digestion of PPH was consistent with the observed changes in plasma amino acid concentrations, but whey digestibility was lower under ageing conditions. These results show that PPH is rapidly digested and absorbed due to the hydrolysis into short peptide chains, and that healthy elderly have similar absorption as younger individuals.