[Possible route for thiamine participation in fatty acid synthesis].

The possibility of thiamine partaking in the synthesis of fatty acids through the functions unrelated to the catalytic properties of thiamine-diphosphate was studied. Rats kept on a fat-free ration devoid of thiamine were given thiamine of thiochrome with no vitaminic properties. The total fatty acids content in different tissues and incorporation therein of tagged acetate and pyruvate was determined, while the fatty acids composition of the liver was investigated by using gas chromatography. Thiamine and thiochrome produced a similar effect on a number of the study factors, i.e. they forced down the total acids level in the spleen, intensified incorporation of tagged acetate and pyruvate in fatty acids of the heart and uniformly changed the fatty acids composition in the liver. It is suggested that the unindirectional effects of thiamine and thiochrome is due to the oxidative transformation of thiamine into thiochrome.