Absorption and metabolism of [U-14C] acetic acid in growing pigs

Abstract

ABSTRACTBy tracing14C after an injection of [U-14C] sodium acetate into the caecum of pigs, it was found that proportionately 0·93 of the acetate injected was absorbed. About 0·25 of the administered acetate was recovered in the body 96 h later. It is assumed that the remainder was oxidized during this period and exhaled as carbon dioxide.The14C initially predominated in plasma lipids, but it progressively shifted over the 96 h to plasma proteins. In the lipid fraction of blood plasma there was a continuous shift of14C from triglycerides and free cholesterol to cholesterol esters over the 96-h period of measurement.In the body most of the14C was recovered in the fat, liver and intestinal wall. The highest concentration of14C was in the bile, especially in glycine-conjugated bile acids.It was shown that the absorbed acetate was a source of energy to the pigs and it was recycled and metabolized into more complex components in the body during 96 h.