Folates of rat tissue. Bioassay of tissue folylpolyglutamates and a relationship of liver folypolyglutamates to nutritional folate sufficiency.
The folate content of young rat tissues extracted into boiling ascorbate was assayed by Lactobactillus casei both without and after treatment by a folate-free preparation of conjugase. The total folate content of various tissues was: liver, 8.9 microgram/g; kidney, 2.6; adrenal, 2.6; bone marrow, 2.4; spleen, 0.9; erythrocytes, 0.8; small intestinal mucosa, 0.7; small intestinal smooth muscle, 0.8; heart, 0.6; brain, 0.4, and skeletal muscle, 0.1 microgram/g tissue. For most tissues, with the exception of muscle and kidney, approximately 80% of the total folates assayed as longer chain length folylpolyglutamates. When liver folates were analyzed from rats fed folate-supplemented, control and folate-deficient diets, a relationship was found between folate nutrition and distribution of folylpolyglutamates. The proportion of total folates in the form of longer chain length folylpolyglutamates was greatest in the livers of folate-deficient rats and least in the livers of folate-supplemented rats.
D000818:Animals; D001681:Biological Assay; D005492:Folic Acid / Q000031:analogs & derivatives*; D005494:Folic Acid Deficiency / Q000378:metabolism*; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism*; D011624:Pteroylpolyglutamic Acids / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D014018:Tissue Distribution
D011624:Pteroylpolyglutamic Acids; D005492:Folic Acid