Fig. 5: The impact of α-lactalbumin-enriched formula on the kynurenine pathway, ketogenesis, and serotonin levels on Day 16.

A Levels of key metabolic products of the kynurenine pathway in serum, liver, and urine. B Concentrations of ketone bodies in serum and liver. C Serotonin levels in serum, liver, and 4 brain regions. A–C The differences between the SF group and one of the formula-fed groups were evaluated using ANOVA followed by Tukey HSD post-hoc tests on generalized log-transformed data, accounting for litter effects in the model. Similarly, the differences between the ALAC and WPI groups were assessed using ANOVA on generalized log-transformed data. For serum and liver data, both formula volume, postprandial time, and litter effect were included as factors in the model. For liver, brain, and urine, only the litter effect was accounted for. Data are represented as mean ± SEM. *p < 0.05, #p < 0.1. PFC prefrontal cortex.