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Title: SERUM BETA-CAROTENE CONCENTRATIONS DURING CAROTENOID DEPLETION MAY BE INFLUENCED BY THE BODY POOL OF VITAMIN A

Author
item Burri, Betty
item Neidlinger, Terry
item CLIFFORD, ANDREW - UC DAVIS

Submitted to: Experimental Biology
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/16/1996
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: We hypothesized that the vitamin A body pool (VABP) might influence beta carotene (BC) metabolism and serum concentrations. We fed 9 women a low carotenoid diet (58 ug/day BC,1100 ug/day preformed vitamin A (VA) for 68 days. Serum VA and carotenoids were measured by reversed-phase HPLC. VABP was estimated by stable isotope dilution (ratio of d-4 retinol/native retinol in serum). Serum VA concentrations did not change, and were not correlated with VABP. VABP decreased in most women, suggesting that they had been eating >1100 RE VA prior to entering the study. The extent of this decrease was negatively correlated to initial VABP (r=0. 98). VABP estimates were positively correlated with serum BC concentrations during carotenoid delpetion while higher serum BC concentrations during depletion were associated with great loss in VABP (r varying from 0.70 - 0.85). This suggests that subjects with high VABP maintained higher serum BC concentrations during carotenoid depletion, possibly by metabolizing less BC to VA.