VULNERABILITY OF THE IMMATURE BRAIN TO PHENYLACETATE INTOXICATION: TISSUE PERMEABILITY TO PHENYLACETATE |
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| Authors: | Y. H. Loo T. Fulton H. M. Wisniewski |
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| Affiliation: | New York State Institute for Basic Research in Mental Retardation, Staten Island, NY 10314, USA. |
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| Abstract: | In the rat phenylacetate readily penetrates into such tissues as brain, eyes, heart, kidneys, and liver. One hour after the subcutaneous injection of sodium phenylacetate into rats ranging in age from 1 to 65 days, the ratios of the concentrations (μmolig) in blood/tissue were approx 1:1 in all of these tissues with the exception of the brain. The blood-brain ratio changed from 1:1 in the 1–7 day old rat to the adult ratio of 2:1 at 21 days of age. The free access of phenylacetate into the immature brain is especially relevant to phenylketonuria, a metabolic disease in which excessive amounts of phenylacetate are produced in peripheral tissues. |
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