The <i>in vitro </i>Uptake of Lysine and Alanine by Human Jejunal Mucosa in Nutritional Rickets

Abstract

In some congenital and acquired conditions, aminoaciduria is associated with defective absorption by the mucosa of the small intestine. There is generalised aminoaciduria in nutritional rickets; thus, jejunal function was investigated. Epithelium from six patients was incubated with a dilute solution of radioactively labelled lysine and alanine. The concentration in the tissue, compared with that in the medium, was a measure of the uptake which, in turn, was thought to parallel the absorptive capacity of the gut. In the conditions of these observations, no impairment of uptake was demonstrated.