Respiratory Catabolism in Man of the Degradative Intermediates of L-Ascorbic-1-C14 Acid

Summary1. Chromatographic and radio-autographic evidence is presented showing that progressive degradative changes occur in L-ascorbic acid dissolved in water and kept at 25°C for a 72-hour period. 2. When a human subject received 20 μc of freshly dissolved L-ascorbic-1-C14 acid solution, little or no C14 appears in his respiratory CO2. 3. Men who were given similar samples of L-ascorbic-1-C14 acid aged for 36 and 72 hours, respectively, excreted 30.6% of the ingested C14 as respiratory CO2.