Free fatty acid concentration and composition in arterial blood

Abstract

The effect of the administration of norepinephrine, glucose and insulin, pentobarbital, and Hypertensin on the arterial concentration and composition of plasma free fatty acids (FFA) has been studied in man and dog. With a rise of the FFA concentration as produced by norepinephrine, the contribution of oleic acid to the total FFA increased, while that of stearic and palmitic acids decreased. The reverse changes in the FFA composition were observed when their arterial level fell under the influence of other agents studied. The FFA composition was dependent on the FFA concentration in arterial blood, but not on the experimental condition of the subject or animal at the time of analysis. At high FFA levels, the FFA composition approached that of depot fat.