Studies of Antibiotics in Weanling Rats Administered Suboptimum Levels of Certain B Vitamins Orally and Parenterally

Abstract

Orally administered aureomycin and penicillin markedly increased the growth of 128 weanling rats fed synthetic diets contaning marginal levels of pantothenic acid or thiamine respectively. This effect was observed whether the vitamins were administered orally or subcutaneously. The antibiotics stimulated growth only slightly or not at all with optimum amounts of thiamine and pantothenic acid present in the ration or administered subcutaneously. A greater amount of pantothenic acid was observed to be present in the small intestine of those rats receiving aureomycin and suboptimum amounts of pantothenic acid administered either orally or by subcutaneous injection.