THE SYNTHESIS AND SECRETION OF MILK FAT

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Five mammary glands (cow) were used in a perfusion experiment with various modifications of an isotonic saline solution. Perfusion failed to cause secretion of milk fat calculated to be in the gland. While the fat content of the post-mortem milkings was small, microscopic examination revealed a normal distribution of large and small fat globules. This together with failure to find free fat particles in alveoli is taken as evidence against the hypothesis that the increase in fat with the progress of milking is due to physical retardation of the fat particles by smallness of the ducts. Perfusing corn oil emulsion through 4 glands failed to cause an increase in the fat content of the resulting secretion. Microscopic sections of glands perfused with colored emulsion showed fairly uniform coloration of the fat cells indicating its capability of being deposited in the fat cells of the gland. Chemical analysis of the extracted fat from 2 glands showed that the volatile fatty acids, as shown by the Reichert-Wollney number, were increased by perfusion to that of practically normal butterfat.

This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: