13C-LABELED TRIOLEIN FOR DIAGNOSTIC BREATH TESTS

THE (14)C-TRIOLEIN BREATH TEST IS A POPLAR ALTERNATIVE TO THE CLASSICAL 72-HOUR FECAL FAT COLLECTION FOR MEASURING FAT MALABSORPTION BECAUSE OF ITS SIMPLICITY AND THE RAPIDITY WITH WHICH A DIAGNOSIS CAN BE MADE. HOWEVER, BECAUSE OF THE CONCERN FOR THE LONG-TERM EFFECTS OF LOW-LEVEL RADIATION (ESPECIALLY WHEN INGESTED), THIS TEST IS GENERALLY NOT USED IN CHILDREN OR WOMEN OF CHILDBEARING AGE. THE REPLACEMENT OF THE RADIOACTIVE CARBON WITH ITS STABLE ISOTOPE ((13)C), AND ITS DETECTION USING A GAS ISOTOPE RATIO MASS SPECTROMETER, HAS NOW MADE THE TRIOLEIN BREATH TEST AVAILABLE TO ANY POPULATION OF SUBJECTS. A PRINCIPAL LIMITATION IN ITS USE TODAY IS THE HIGH COST OF (13)C-LABELED TRIOLEIN. MARTEK CORPORATION PLANS A BIOLOGICAL APPROACH TO THE SYNTHESIS OF TRIOLEIN. (13)C-TRIOLEIN WILL BE PRODUCED USING A MICROORGANISM GROWING ON A (13)C-LABELED CARBON SOURCE. IT IS HOPED THAT THE TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPED IN THIS RESEARCH WILL REDUCE THE PRODUCTION COSTS SUCH THAT A 10-FOLD REDUCTION IN COST PER PATIENT TEST CAN BE REALIZED. BY ELIMINATING THE INGESTION OF RADIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS, THE TRIOLEIN BREATH TEST SHOULD BE MORE READILY AVAILABLE TO THECLINICIAN FOR DIAGNOSTIC USES IN WOMEN AND CHILDREN.