Carotene and vitamin A

Abstract

It has also been shown that, in the rat, carotene is converted into the "classical" vitamin A of liver oils, characterised by the blue colour given with the antimony trichloride reagent (absorption band 610-630,u,u) and by the presence of an absorption band in the region of 325/.pu [ Capper, 1930; Moore, 1930]. Before any generalisations could be made it seemed desirable that similar experiments should be carried out with animals differing widely from the rat. For this reason, as well as for the fact that in the fowl the problem presents points of peculiar interest, the work to be described was undertaken.