Alleviation of Vitamin B Deficiency in the Rat by Certain Natural Fats and Synthetic Esters

Abstract

High percentages of fat in vitamin B deficient diets increased the rate of growth and decreased the incidence of beriberi in rats. Coconut fat was the most effective natural fat tested. The effectiveness of esters of single fatty acids in alleviating the symptoms of vitamin B deficiency in rats depended upon the length of the carbon chain of the fatty acid. The effectiveness was maximum at the 8-carbon acid and decreased in each direction from this point. Spastic beriberi in rats was cured by the feeding of glyceryl caprylate or caproate. The apparent nutritive value of fats and single acid esters in vitamin B deficient diets was not the same as in diets that contained adequate vitamin B. Increasing the autoclaved yeast intake improved the rate of gain and delayed the onset of beriberi in rats receiving vitamin B deficient diets but the addition of a source of vitamin B was more effective than increasing the autoclaved yeast. A high intake of protein or of vitamin G (autoclaved yeast) was not a requisite for the action of fat in alleviating the effects of a vitamin B deficient diet. Determinations of the refractive index of the fatty acid fraction of fat from the brains and livers as well as magnetooptic determinations of caprylic and caproic acids from these fractions failed to show any differences that could be attributed to the effect of vitamin B deficiency. The magneto-optic minima of formaldehyde and formic acid were found in the brains, livers and blood of rats used in this study. The results are discussed in relation to those obtained in other laboratories.