Injectable Vitamin Research Articles

Injectable vs. Oral Vitamin A for Fattening Steer Calves

Two trials were conducted with fattening calves to determine the comparative efficacy of oral (20,000 I.U. per day) and initially-injected vitamin A (1, 4 or 6 million I.U.). Both feeding trials covered a period of 210 days each. The rations contained a level of 1.5 mg. of carotene per kilogram. Both methods of administering vitamin A resulted in significant (P<.05) increases in daily gain and feed consumption. Efficiency of feed conversion was improved by all vitamin A treatments. Periodic serum vitamin A analyses indicated the catle initially administered 1 million I.U. of vitamin A by injection in the biceps jemoris approached borderline vitamin A deficiency after 210 days on trial. Both higher levels of initial injections (4 or 6 million I.U.) resulted in apparently normal levels of serum vitamin A through 200 to 210 days. Liver stores of vitamin A at time of slaughter showed very little storage in the control lots of both experiments and for those injected initially with 1 million I.U. All other treatments (20,000 I.U. orally per day, 4 million I.U. injected initially or 6 million I.U. injected initially) showed from 12 to 34 meg. of vitamin per gm. of fresh liver at time of slaughter. No trend of treatment effect on U. S. carcass grades was detected.

Evidence Concerning the Human Requirement for Vitamin B12: Use of the Whole Body Counter for Determination of Absorption of Vitamin B12

An example of the use of the whole body counter as a safe, simple and accurate means of assessment of absorption, distribution and excretion of a metabolite, vitamin B12, is presented. Results of absorption studies in five subjects without pernicious anemia and eighteen patients with pernicious anemia are presented. The range of absorption in the subjects without pernicious anemia is 45 to 80 per cent with a mean of 70 per cent and in those with pernicious anemia 0 to 17 per cent with a mean of 3.25 per cent. Studies of biological half-life of vitamin B12 are presented in sixteen subjects (eleven with pernicious anemia and five without), including three normal subjects, who have been observed for as long as two years. There was no significant difference in decay constants between those with pernicious anemia and the normal subjects. The values ranged from 0.09 to 0.15 per cent loss per day of labeled vitamin in normal subjects, and from 0.11 to 0.17 per cent loss per day in eleven patients with pernicious anemia. These figures correspond to a biological half-life of 407 to 770 days. The proposal is made and support cited for the concept that the daily need for injectable vitamin B12 in patients with pernicious anemia reflects almost entirely the loss of the vitamin from the body. Despite the marked difference in the size of the body stores of vitamin B12 in normal subjects and in those with pernicious anemia, daily loss rate constants are essentially identical. Parameters are identified which require study before dietary requirements levels can be set more precisely.

Is hearing loss due to nutritional deficiency? Further studies on the influence of vitamin A in certain types of impaired hearing.

IN A PRELIMINARY report, 1 a short time ago, I presented my experience with a new injectable vitamin A preparation in certain types of impaired hearing. Since the publication of this paper, Anderson, Zoller and Alexander 2 have conducted some interesting studies with the same preparation and concluded that parenteral vitamin A therapy in massive doses is a valuable therapeutic agent in patients with deafness not amenable to the usual otolaryngologic methods of treatment. These studies have aroused considerable interest, not only in the newer therapy suggested but in some of the older theories which were advanced in an effort to show a relation between nutritional deficiency and hardness of hearing. This paper, therefore, has a twofold purpose, viz., (1) to clarify to some extent the possible role of vitamins in deafness and (2) to present results of more extended studies with anatola® 3 an improved injectable vitamin A product.