| Immortalist 2004-08-27, 2:10 am |
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"HB" <hbkta@aol.com> wrote in message
news:b901e82f.0408261937.711703fd@posting.google.com...
> mtklima@yahoo.com (Milan Klima) wrote in message
news:<afe6b1c8.0408261459.3d0f20cf@posting.google.com>...
> the research may be dated but:
>
> Vitamin B-12 is an essential vitamin that is only produced by
> microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi and algae; animals and plants
> cannot synthesize B-12 (animals are B-12 sources to non-vegetarians
> because animals ingest microorganisms). Unwashed vegetables may also
> contain significant sources if they are contaminated with B-12
> containing bacteria. However, in developed countries where vegetables
> are washed during harvest, these bacteria are easily lost.
>
> http://www.trianglevegsociety.org/g.../v11_1/b12.html
>
Years ago I heard that microorganisms in the Appendix can produce B12, if the
right foods are present;
+ cecum and appendix versus rumen for digestion of cellulose (f 37.16,37.17)
- herbivores and omnivores have cellulose as a large %age of their food
+ cecum
- is located at the junction of the small and large (colon) intestines
- has bacteria and microbes that are able to digest cellulose
- is blind-ending
- exists as the appendix in humans (non functional)
- compare: cecum is short in coyote, is long and spiraled in koalas
- cellulose is processed last in non rominants, done to extract remaining
food value
+ ruminants
- have "4 chambered stomach"
- really derivatives of esophagus and stomach
- cellulose is digested FIRST, (compare w/ above)
- more efficient than cecum or appendix
+ compare: cow patty and horse droppings
- droppings are coarse due to cellulose content (inefficient cecum)
http://www.ucalgary.ca/~bali/biol233/233-b.txt
But there is not much information on this.
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