The addition of pure beta-hydroxybutyrate in the form of the corresponding acid affected a decrease in urine pH as well as a decrease in plasma bicarbonate concentration. This is easily explained by the chemical processes that occur when the acid enters the body’s fluid media, namely, the initiation of dissociation. During dissociation, beta-hydroxybutyric acid dissociates into a hydrogen proton and the corresponding acid anion according to the equation:
Free hydrogen ions actively bind to bicarbonate ions in the plasma, which leads to a natural decrease in their concentration in the free form. The formation of hydrogen ions is a predictor for a sharp decrease in the acidity of the media. This produces carbonic acid molecules, which in turn can lead to carbon dioxide saturation of the blood as additional effects.
On the other hand, a significant result was that the pure ketone body affected the reduction of ammonia excretion in the blood and thus essentially inhibited the processes of ammonia genesis. In this sense, it is essential to note that beta-hydroxybutyric acid itself could not affect the intensity of ammonia genesis directly, and thus the reduction in ammonia production was mediated by metabolic pathways of transformation of the molecule.
In particular, any transformations of beta-hydroxybutyric acid in the body occurred simultaneously with a change in the NADH/NAD+ balance, including due to active glutamate synthesis. As a consequence, as mediated earlier, there is a suppression of ammonia genesis due to an imbalance of NADH/NAD+ and glutamate synthesis/destruction.
In short, infusion of pure ketone body already expectedly led to a decrease in the intensity of ammonia genesis, but because the ketone body was represented by an acid, dissociation processes could not but have effects on pH reduction.