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Portal and Vena Caval Plasma Methionine Concentrations in Young Pigs Administered L-Methionine, N-Acetyl-L-Methionine and N-Acetyl-D-Methionine

Departments of Pediatrics, Biochemistry and Surgery, The University of Iowa College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52242

N-Acyl-methionine derivatives have been proposed as replacements for methionine in supplementing food products low in this amino acid. We studied the effects of N-acetyl-L-methionine, N-acetyl-D-methionine and L-methionine loads (2 mmol/kg body weight) on portal and vena caval plasma amino acid concentrations in young pigs (n = 4). L-Methionine loading significantly increased mean (± SD) portal and vena caval plasma methionine concentrations from baseline values of 6.44 ± 1.03 and 6.63 ± 0.99 µmol/100 ml, respectively, to mean peak values of 340 ± 75.0 and 265 ± 49.8 µmol/100 ml, respectively. N-Acetyl-L-methionine loading increased mean peak portal and vena caval plasma methionine concentrations to 291 ± 85 and 220 ± 51.6 µmol/100 ml, respectively. N-Acetyl-L-methionine could not be detected in either portal or vena caval plasma. In contrast, N-acetyl-D-methionine loading produced only a small rise in mean peak portal and vena caval plasma methionine concentrations (13.0 ± 4.31 and 8.62 ± 1.71 µmol/100 ml, respectively). Concentrations of N-acetyl-D-methionine increased from baseline values of 0 µmol/100 ml to mean peak values of 251 ± 32.0 and 234 ± 72.3 µmol/100 ml, respectively, in portal and vena caval plasma. These data explain the poor utilization of N-acetyl-D-methionine as a methionine source.

KEY WORDS: • methionine • N-acetyl-L-methionine

¹ Current address: Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.

² To whom correspondence should be addressed.

Manuscript received 8 February 1984.

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