Effect of cobalt chloride on the content of lipid and glycolytic intermediates in rabbit liver and heart.

It has been reported that cardiomyopathy was the main cause of death in Quebec, Omaha and Minneapolis beer-drinkers, who drank a large quantity of beer containing cobalt chloride as a stabilizer of foam. Myocardial biopsies of Quebec beerdrinkers1) revealed an increase of glycogen granules and accumulation of lipid droplets or vacuoles. Similar findings were noted in the cardiac muscles of rabbits injected with cobalt chloride2). In a previous report3), hyperglycemia and triglyceridemia were described in cobalt-injected rabbits. The present study was undertaken to see whether cobalt can bring about an increase in cardiac glycogen content or an accumulation of triglyceride in the hearts of rabbits. Hyperglycemia was investigated in conjunction with other glycolytic intermediates in the heart and liver. Triglyceridemia was pursued in relation to precursors of triglyceride, such as plasma FFA concentration, and to the liver triglyceride content, as well as ketogenesis in the liver.