Acetoacetate-Induced Changes in Blood Lactic and Blood Ascorbic Acids; Prevention by Insulin and Amellin

Abstract

The daily injn. of 50 mg./kg. of Na acetoacetate into normal rabbits in increasing doses markedly increased the blood lactate level to an avg. of 36.7 mg./100 cc. (control = 7.9 mg./lOO cc.) after 90 days. In a 2d group of animals receiving about half the dosage, the plasma ascorbic acid decreased from 2.50 to 0.83 mg./lOO cc. after 60 days. Simultaneous injn. of amellin prevented the accumulation of blood lactate. In animals which had received Na acetoacetate for 90 days, amellin restored the blood lactate level to normal within 40 days, in spite of the continued injn. of increasing amts. of the acetoacetate. In an expt. otherwise identical, insulin was not as effective as amellin; when it was injected, the blood lactate diminished initially but later increased. The amellin-treated animals were healthier than the insulin-treated ones.