ABSTRACT
Ascorbic acid is essential for the synthesis of collagen, a protein characterized by its relatively large content of hydroxyproline. Actually hydroxylation of proline and lysine can occur to some extent in the absence of ascorbic acid, but both prolyl and lysyl hydroxylases are markedly potentiated by ascorbic acid. Similarly F. M. Sinex et al. showed that lysine rather than hydroxylysine is the major precursor or collagen hydroxylysine. Normal hydroxyproline formation was resumed very rapidly after the administration of ascorbic acid. While normal animals show an appreciable lag in hydroxyproline formation, scorbutic animals showed an almost immediate production of hydroxyproline once ascorbic acid was administered. The scorbutic wound regenerating area seems to be in a state of cellular organization that merely requires some effect of ascorbic acid for the synthesis of hydroxyproline. The ascorbic acid-injected sponge synthesized collagen in normal amounts, as measured by hydroxyproline synthesis, while the saline control showed little synthesis.
