Abstract
The urinary excretion of lipoic acid in 2 hours in the early morning in healthy and sick children was determined using microbioassay of Streptococcus faecalis R and the following findings were obtained.
1. It was proved that the urinary excretion of lipoic acid in healthy children increased with the gain of the body weight. A significant correlation was found between urinary excretion and body weight. The amount of the urinary excretion of the acid in healthy children was 25 to 45mg per kg body weight in 2 hours in the early morning.
2. The urinary excretion of lipoic acid in the patients suffering from renal diseases, such as acute gomerulonephritis or nephrotic syndrome, was decreased and the amount of excretion in 2 hours in the early morning was 15mg per kg body weight on the average. The decrease returned to normal with clinical restoration.
3. In the case of malnutrition due to several causes, the tendency of increase in urinary excretion of lipoic acid was observed.
4. Percentage urinary excretion of lipoic acid in 2 hours following intravenous injection of 1mg α-lipoic acid per kg body weight ranged from 0.2 to 0.7% and decreased in renal diseases.
