Oxygen consumption of normal and atherosclerotic intima.

THERE have been only a few reports in the literature concerning the oxidative metabolism of arterial tissue." Maier and Haimovici were the first to compare the oxidative capacity of different segments of normal rabbit aorta, using succinate and pphenylenediamine as substrates. Their results were reported as c. mm. O2 consumed per mg. dry weight of tissue per hour. They demonstrated no significant difference between the oxygen consumption from the locations (arch, thoracic, abdominal) studied. Di Sabato and Comolli, in the same year, reported figures for oxygen consumption by aortas from both normal and cholesterol-fed rabbits. Their results were expressed as c. mm. Oo per mg. DNA (deoxyribose nucleic acid) per hour. They reported that the oxidation of octanoate and acetoacetate by the aortas of cholesterol-fed rabbits was increased as compared with normal controls, while the oxidation of a-ketoglutarate was unchanged. They did not use succinate as a substrate, nor did thej divide the aorta into segments to compare differences in location. The work of Fisher and Geller is the only study of which the author is aware in which an attempt was made to compare metabolic activity of the arch, thoracic, and abdominal segments of normal and atherosclerotic rabbits. They reported that the aortic oxygen consumption in normal rabbits was lowest in the thoracic portion and not significantly different in the arch