Abstract
Summary
Aminoacetonitrile, with C14 in its cyanide group, was synthesized. When this compound was administered to weanling rats, the major portion of the radioactivity was eliminated in the urine, while a minor part appeared in respiratory CO2. High initial C14 concentrations were observed in various body tissues. The proportion of this C14 due to unchanged nitrile decreased fairly rapidly with time. Labeling was found in tissue proteins, and to a lesser extent in liver lipids and glycogen. Also, in rats fed a diet containing isotopic aminoacetonitrile, radioactivity was detected in the sulfated polysaccharides of the enlarged epiphyseal plates of the bones. The presence of C14 in glycine and serine of liver protein and in urinary creatinine, allantoin, and hippuric acid, indicated an appreciable conversion of the cyanide radical into a carboxyl group. However, the major portion of the C14-containing metabolites was not identified.
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