Hostname: page-component-76fb5796d-45l2p Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-29T07:13:43.012Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The effect of streptomycin and erythromycin on vitamin B12 nutrition in rats in which coprophagy was prevented

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 March 2007

B. K. Armstrong
Affiliation:
Department of Biochemistry, Royal Perth Hospital, Perth, Western Australia
D. H. Curnow
Affiliation:
Department of Biochemistry, Royal Perth Hospital, Perth, Western Australia
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

1. Vitamin B12 nutrition was studied in normal, coprophagy-prevented and antibiotic-treated rats on Vitamin B12-deficient diets with and without a vitamin B12 supplement; the indices used were excretion of total urinary ether-soluble acid (TUESA) and methylmalonic acid, and vitamin B12 assays on the liver and intestinal tract.

2. A significant positive correlation (r = 0.61) was found between TUESA excretion and weight of rats, and a significant negative correlation (r = −0.89) between TUESA excretion and liver vitamin B12 contents.

3. Although prevention of coprophagy reduced the contents of vitamin B12 in the stomach and small intestine, no effect on vitamin B12 nutrition, as assessed by TUESA excretion and liver vitamin B12 contents, was found. Rats in which coprophagy was permitted became vitamin B12-deficient, when given a diet in which vitamin B12 was low.

4. The amounts of TUESA and methylmalonic acid excreted indicated that streptomycin and erythromycin administered orally prevented vitamin B12 deficiency in rats on a diet deficient in vitamin B12. Liver vitamin B12 contents were, however, very low in these rats. this anomaly was thought to be due to the non-specificity of the Euglena gracilis assay for vitamin B12.

5. It was concluded that, under the conditions of these experiments, coprophagy was not necessary to the vitamin B12-sparing action of antibiotics.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © The Nutrition Society 1967

References

Armstrong, B. K. (1967). Br. J. Nutr. 21, 309.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Armstrong, B. K. & Softly, A. (1966). Br. J. Nutr. 20, 595.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barnes, R. H., Bourdeau, C., Kwong, E. & Fiala, G. (1960). Fedn Proc. Fedn Am. Socs exp. Biol. 19, 411.Google Scholar
Barnes, R. H. & Fiala, G. (1958). J. Nutr. 65, 103.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barnes, R. H., Fiala, G., McGehee, B. & Brown, A. (1957). J. Nutr. 63, 489.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cuthbertson, W. F. J. (1952 a). Br. J. Nutr. 6, 330.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cuthbertson, W. F. J. (1952 b). J. Sci. Fd Agric. 3, 49.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Davis, B. D. & Mingioli, E. S. (1950). J. Bact. 60, 17.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Davis, R. L. & Chow, B. F. (1951). Proc. Soc. exp. Biol. Med. 77, 218.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ford, J. E. (1953). Br. J. Nutr. 7, 299.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garibaldi, J. A., Kjichi, K., Snell, N. S. & Lewis, J. C. (1950). Abstr. Pap. Am. chem. Soc. 117th Meeting, p. 18A.Google Scholar
Johansson, K. R., Peterson, G. E. & Dick, E. C. (1953). J. Nutr. 49, 135.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kasuya, M. (1964). J. Bact. 88, 322.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kelly, R. F., Bray, R. W. & Phillips, P. H. (1954). J. Anim. Sci. 13, 332.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Merzbach, D. & Grossowicz, N. (1965). J. Nutr. 87, 41.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mickelsen, O. (1962). A. Rev. Biochem. 31, 515.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Morgan, T. B., Gregory, M. E., Kon, S. K. & Porter, J. W. G. (1964). Br. J. Nutr. 18, 595.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nicholas, D. R. & Pitney, W. R. (1958). Aust. J. exp. Biol. med. Sci. 36, 603.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Oginsky, E. L. (1952). Archs Biochem. Biophys. 36, 71.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Raibaud, P., Valencia, R., Dickinson, A. B. & Cong, H. N. (1965) C. r. hebd. Séanc. Acad. Sci., Paris. 260, 5952.Google Scholar
Smith, D. G. & Robinson, H. J. (1945). J. Bact. 50, 613.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stokstad, E. L. R. & Jukes, T. H. (1950). Proc. Soc. exp. Biol. Med. 73, 523.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stokstad, E. L. R. & Jukes, T. H. (1951). Proc. Soc. exp. Biol. Med. 76, 73.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tappan, D. V., Lewis, U. J., Register, U. D. & Elvehjem, C. A. (1950). Archs Biochem. 29, 408.Google Scholar
Valencia, R., Sacquet, E., Raibaud, P., Cong, H. N. & Charlier, H. (1965). C.r. hebd. Séanc. Acad. Sci., Paris. 260, 6439.Google Scholar
Whitehill, A. R., Oleson, J. J. & Hutchings, B. L. (1950). Proc. Soc. exp. Biol. Med. 74, 11.CrossRefGoogle Scholar