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Mechanisms for Vitamin A Transfer from Blood to Milk in Rhesus Monkeys¹

Institute of Medical and Physiological Chemistry and Departments of Dermatology and of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Uppsala, S-750 14 Uppsala 14, Sweden

In order to study vitamin transport during lactation tritium labeled vitamin A, attached to serum lipoproteins or retinol-binding protein (RBP), was injected intravenously into eight Rhesus monkeys. The turnover rate of vitamin A in plasma and its appearance in milk was quantitatively and qualitatively investigated. The turnover of plasma RBP-retinol, which was somewhat faster in lactating than in non-lactating animals, exceeded that of lipoprotein-vitamin A by a factor of three. Tritium-vitamin A appeared in milk mainly as retinylesters. The fractional rate of transfer was about 60% higher for vitamin bound to RBP than for other forms of plasma vitamin A. Consequently, about 90% of the vitamin A appearing in milk will normally be derived from the retinol-RBP complex. The importance of the lipoprotein-mediated transfer of vitamin A will probably increase during a high intake of the vitamin.

KEY WORDS: • vitamin A • milk • plasma • rhesus monkey • lactation

¹ This study was supported by grants from the Swedish Medical Research Council (19P-5092 and 03495), the Swedish Baby Food Fund for Nutritional Research, Prenatala forskningsnämnden and the Ford Foundation (660-0405B).

Manuscript received 6 November 1978.