1911.] Destiny of Cholesterol in the Animal Organism. 



467 



Cholesterol Content of the Livers of Newly-born Babbits. 



Experiment XI. — Five newly-born animals were taken, the mother having 

 been fed on an ordinary mixed diet of bran, oats, and green stuff. 



The livers of the five animals weighed 17*12 grm. They were found to 

 contain O0369 grm. of cholesterol, free and combined, - 0317 grm. of free 

 ■cholesterol. The ester cholesterol, by difference, was - 0052 grm. 



The results of the above 11 experiments are gathered together in the 

 following table (p. 468). 



Discussion of Results. 



On comparing the figures in the following table it will be seen that in 

 Experiments III, IV, and VII, on animals fed on extracted bran alone, the 

 total free and combined cholesterol per kilogramme of body weight is 

 remarkably constant. This figure may be taken as representing the normal 

 cholesterol content of the liver under conditions in which the body weight is 

 kept constant, but no cholesterol or phytosterol is absorbed with the food. 

 On comparing these figures with those in Experiments I and II, in which the 

 .animals had been fed for a very long period on green food containing 

 phytosterol, a small increase is noticed, indicating that some phytosterol 

 was absorbed from the food and appeared in the liver in the form of 

 •cholesterol. It would of course require a much larger number of experi- 

 mental data to be certain on the point, but the result is in agreement with 

 •the observations on blood published in Part VII of the series, in which 

 .a similar increase in the cholesterol content of the blood of rabbits fed on 

 extracted bran plus phytosterol compared with that of similar animals fed on 

 •extracted bran alone was observed. If we consider the percentage contents 

 of the livers themselves the increase is not observed. It will be noticed, 

 however, that the livers of the two animals fed on green cabbage are 

 •extraordinarily large compared with those of the other animals of about the 

 same weight. Whether this is accidental or brought about by the nature of 

 the food we are unable to say, though the animals, as far as general and 

 post-mortem appearances were concerned, seemed to have been in good health. 



In the case of the animals E and F, fed on extracted bran to which an 

 excess of cholesterol had been added, or H, in which the cholesterol was 

 injected into the peritoneal cavity, a marked increase in the total cholesterol 

 of the liver is noticeable, no matter whether the actual cholesterol found, or 

 the percentage in the liver, or the weight per kilogramme of body weight is 

 considered. This increase is much too large, we consider, to be due to 

 .chance. 



In Experiments IX and X, on animals kept in a state of inanition and 



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