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Updated: Jun 19, 2026

Quantitative Analysis of Dietary Vitamin A Metabolites in Murine Ocular and Non-Ocular Tissues Using High-Performance Liquid Chromatography
Published on: December 27, 2024
VITAMIN A IN EYE TISSUES
1Kaiser Wilhelm-Institut für Zellphysiologie, Berlin-Dahlem, Germany, and the Chemical Institute of the University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.
Abstract:
1. Vitamin A has been found in the retinas and the combined pigment epithelia and choroid layers of frogs, pigs, sheep, and cattle. The vitamin was identified by (a) its specific absorption at 328 mmicro; (b) the blue color yielded with antimony trichloride, associated with an absorption band at about 620 mmicro; (c) anti-xerophthalmic and growth-promoting activity; and (d) quantitative relationships among the results of these three types of observation. 2. The mammalian retinas contain about 22gamma, the frog retinas about 400gamma, and the frog pigmented layers almost 2 mg. of vitamin A per gram of dry tissue. 3. With the possible exception of hepaxanthin, no other carotenoids were found in the mammalian tissues.
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