Synthesis of Fatty Acids by Rat Intestine in vitro.

Studies on the lipid composition of human small bowel mucosa.

“…These mucosal fatty acids might have been formed within the absorptive cell or synthesized elsewhere and transported to the intestine. Synthesis of long chain fatty acids from a two carbon precursor, acetate-14C, has been shown to occur in rat small intestine in vitro, although phospholipid palmitic and stearic were the chief fatty acids formed (21). The in vivo capacity of the human small intestine for synthesizing long chain fatty acids from nonlipid sources appears to be small, for, contrary to the increase in triglyceride fatty acids found in human plasma (22,23) and in rodent liver (24), mucosal triglycerides decreased when fat was removed from the diet (Table VI).…”

“…The 16 males and one female, aged 21 to 43 years, had no history suggestive of small bowel * Submitted for publication February 21,1966; accepted June 15, 1966. This work has been supported by a research grant (NCI-4320) from the National Cancer Institute. A portion of the work was conducted through the clinical research facility of the University of Washington (National Institutes of Health, FR-37).…”

A biochemical and morphologic study of very low density lipoproteins in carbohydrate-induced hypertriglyceridemia

“…Although in the present study, all subjects were on essentially fat-free diets, the possibility that some of the larger VLDL particles and perhaps even some of the smaller ones were produced by intestine rather than liver cannot be excluded. Conceivably, the intestine could have synthesized triglyceride from fatty acids derived from the hydrolysis of bile phospholipids and triglycerides (37) or from fatty acids it had synthesized itself (38). The studies of Windmueller and Levy (39) suggest that lipoprotein of intestinal origin can account for 10% of total VLDL production in rats on a fat-free diet.…”

Fatty acid synthesis in intestinal mucosa of guinea pig

“…This raises the question whether these endogenous acids are synthesized in the small intestine or are transported to it from other tissues. Coniglio, McCormick & Hudson (1956) suggested that the intestine might be capable of synthesizing fatty acids, and Franks, Riley & Isselbacher (1966) have shown that jejunal rings from rats can synthesize fatty acids from [1-14C]acetate. The only previous report of the enzymes of fatty acid synthesis in intestine was that of Ganguly (1960), who found the activity of fatty acid synthetase from ox intestinal mucosa to be very low.…”