NUTR 125 Lecture Notes - Lecture 12: Casimir Funk, Vitamin A Deficiency, Bile Acid
Document Summary
Produce no energy (but some are used in energy-production) If absent from diet, there may be deficiencies. In 1912, casimir funk coined term vitamine , referring to unidentified substances in food that can prevent diseases. Paracelsus (1493-1541) was the father of toxicology. Fat soluble vitamins: a, d, e and k. All have similar mechanism of absorption and excretion. Do not have to be consumed daily. In plant foods (yellow and orange fruits and vegetables) Vision: vitamin a is a component of the visual pigment rhodopsin. Reproduction: vitamin a needed for normal reproduction. Absorption and metabolism of vitamin a requires bile salts (stored in liver), as well as a transport protein. Thus, protein deficiency will have a negative impact on vitamin a status. Xeropthalmia: corneal (epithelial) cells stop secreting mucus, become dry and hard, and then die. Vitamin a deficiency less frequent in developed countries. Still, it is a major problem worldwide:
