Utilization of 3-hydroxybutyrate by chick cerebral hemispheres during postnatal maturation

1. The utilization of 3-hydroxybutyrate has been studied in the chick telencephalon during its post-hatching maturation. 2. In the 1-day-old chick the blood concentration of 3-hydroxybutyrate appears to be relatively high and its value is 5 times that estimated in the 4- and 30-day-old chicks. 3. The determination of the cerebral arteriovenous differences of 3-hydroxybutyrate shows that the brain of the newly-hatched chick takes up 3 times more actively this ketone body than the brain of the 4-day-old bird does. 4. During incubation in a non-oxygenated and an oxygenated physiological medium, in the presence of 3-hydroxy [3-14C]butyrate, the specific radioactivity of the dicarboxylic amino acids in the 1-day-old chick brain slices is higher than in those of the 30-day-old chick, particularly in the oxygenated medium. 5. Thirty minutes after a subcutaneous injection of 3-hydroxy [3-14C]butyrate, the specific radioactivity of the dicarboxylic amino acids in the 1-day-old chick telencephalon is 3-4 times higher than that in the 4- and 30-day-old chick. 6. In conclusion, in the brain of the newly hatched chick, 3-hydroxybutyrate is an efficient precursor in the biosynthesis of dicarboxylic amino acids, particularly glutamate, and, as glucose, it is metabolically related to the "large compartment" of glutamate. 7. These results have been discussed comparatively to those previously obtained in the developing rodent brain.