21-day pregnant rats show high tissular and plasmatic acetone concentrations when
submitted to a 48-hr fast. This rise is, in fact, associated with an enhanced placental
and fetal acetoacetate decarboxylase activity. We propose that acetone formation by
the fetus could be a mechanism for pH maintenance and that acetoacetate decarboxylase
can play a significant role in the handling of 4C-ketone bodies under conditions in
which the substrate concentration cannot easily be controlled by other physiological
mechanisms.
Acetoacetate Decarboxylase
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Rat
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Gestation
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Acetone
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Fetus
