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The Synthesis of Fat from Protein by the Albino Rat

Biochemic Division, Bureau of Animal Industry, United States Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, Maryland

Young male albino rats were fed a diet consisting chiefly of casein, but free from fat and carbohydrates, for 60 days in order to determine whether the rat can synthesize fat from protein. Two similar rats were selected from each of seven litters. One rat of each pair was analyzed for total fatty acid at the beginning of the experiment; its litter mate was analyzed at the end. Each rat fed the test diet for 60 days was found to contain a significantly larger quantity of fatty acid than had been present in its litter mate at the beginning of the experiment. The increases in fatty acid ranged from 38 to 358%, with an average of 257%. The total quantity of fatty acid in the seven rats at the end of the experiment was greater by 47.92 gm. than the total quantity in the seven litter mates at the beginning of the experiment.

The results of these experiments show conclusively that the albino rat can synthesize fat from protein, in corroboration of Longenecker's report.