Lack of a direct correlation between cholesterol synthesis and cell renewal in liver and intestine in the rat

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Abstract
An attempt was made to investigate whether the synthesis of cholesterol is correlated with the synthesis of DNA in the rat. Two organs in vivo were studied in which the cell renewal is known to be different: the liver and the intestine. Various experimental conditions were realized which modify the rate of cholesterol synthesis in these organs. Measurements of the incorporation of [14C]acetate into the unsaponifiable lipids and of [3H]thymidine into the nuclear DNA give, respectively, an index for the intensity of cholesterol and DNA synthesis. Radioactivities were measured 70 min after s.c. injection of the 2 labeled precursors. The intensity of cholesterol synthesis in the intestine and in the liver can apparently change without proportional variations of DNA synthesis in these organs. It is not possible to establish a simple and direct correlation between the 2 syntheses.