QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Purchase Article View Shopping Cart Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Masters, D. G. Articles by Hurley, L. S. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Masters, D. G. Articles by Hurley, L. S.

Release of Zinc from Maternal Tissues during Zinc Deficiency or Simultaneous Zinc and Calcium Deficiency in the Pregnant Rat¹

Department of Nutrition, University of California, Davis, CA 95616

Earlier studies have shown that diets that increase tissue catabolism reduce the teratogenic effects of zinc deficiency. The hypothesis that zinc may be released from body tissues when the metabolic state is altered was further tested. Non-pregnant Sprague-Dawley females were injected with ⁶⁵Zn; after equilibration, the two major pools of zinc, bone and muscle had different specific activities, muscle being much higher. Females were mated and fed diets adequate in zinc and calcium, deficient in zinc alone or deficient in both zinc and calcium. Calculations using weight loss, zinc content of maternal bone and muscle and total zinc content of the fetus at term indicated that most of the zinc in the fetus at term in both the zinc-deficient and zinc-calcium-deficient groups came from breakdown of maternal muscle in the last 3 d of pregnancy. The relatively small amount of additional zinc released from bone in the zinc-calcium-deficient rats early in pregnancy was sufficient to prevent abnormal organogenesis. Specific activity of zinc in the zinc-deficient and zinc-calcium-deficient fetuses was equal and high, indicating that most zinc in these fetuses came from maternal tissues and from the same maternal sources in both groups. In contrast, specific activity of zinc in the fetuses from rats fed adequate zinc and calcium was less than 30% of that in either of the deficient groups; this is consistent with the hypothesis that most zinc accrued by these fetuses came directly from the diet.

KEY WORDS: • zinc metabolism • pregnancy • fetus • placenta • uterus • bone • ⁶⁵Zn • malformations

¹ This research was supported in part by Grant No. HD-01743 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

² Current address: CSIRO Division of Animal Production, Private Mail Bag, P. O., Wembley, Western Australia 6014.

³ D. G. Masters was supported by a grant from the Wool Research Trust Fund on the recommendation of the Australian Wool Corporation.

⁴ Author to whom reprint requests should be sent.

Manuscript received 27 January 1986. Revision accepted 12 June 1986.