RETICULOENDOTHELIAL CELLS AS THE SITE OF SULFANILAMIDE ACETYLATION IN THE RABBIT

¹ Department of Pharmacology, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, Mississippi

The site of acetylation of sulfanilamide and p-aminobenzoic acid in the rabbit has been examined utilizing isolated, intact hepatic parenchymal and reticuloendothelial cells and various other tissues. The acetylation of these compounds, usually attributed to the liver, was found to occur in cells of the reticuloendothelial system. No acetylation could be demonstrated in the hepatic parenchymal cells. Lung and spleen, organs known to contain a high percentage of reticuloendothelial cells, were also found to acetylate these compounds.

These findings emphasize the point that data obtained from experiments utilizing whole liver homogenates may not necessarily reflect a function of the hepatic parenchymal cells.