Abstract
To develop a simple, non-invasive technique for evaluating pancreatic lipolytic activity, we have synthesized a triglyceride analogue containing para-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) esterified to carbon-3 of glycerol. The lipid, dipalmitoyl-mono-para-aminobenzoyl glycerol (diPalm GMPA), is hydrolyzed by pancreatic lipase, and the PABA released from it is absorbed, conjugated in the liver and excreted in the urine. To rats with ligated pancreatic ducts and to sham-operated controls, we administered, per gavage, 85 mg/kg of diPalm GMPA and collected blood and urine for up to 48 hours. In neither group of animals did blood PABA ever rise significantly above baseline values. By 12 hours, 6.3 ± 3.9% of the administerd PABA was recovered in the urine of the ligated rats and 38 ± 8.1% in the urine of the control rats; at 24 hours the values were 11.2 ± 6.3 and 68 ± 10.3%, respectively. To a dog with spontaneous pancreatic acinar atrophy and a control, we gave 40 mg/kg of diPalm GMPA. Blood PABA levels remained unchanged in both animals. By 8 hours, 12.9% of the administered PABA was recovered in the control dog's urine but only 1.50% in the test dog's urine.
Conclusions: DiPalm GMPA may be a useful probe to evaluate pancreatic lipolytic function. The modest serum levels of PABA following diPalm GMPA administration suggest slow digestion/absorption of the lipid substrate coupled with rapid clearance of the liberated PABA from the blood.
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Sloan, H., Seckel, C. 729 PANCREATIC FUNCTION TESTING WITH A LIPID ANALOGUE. Pediatr Res 19, 232 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198504000-00759
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198504000-00759