Zinc Content of Blood Cellular Components and Lymph Node and Spleen Lymphocytes in Severely Zinc-Deficient Rats

• Published in: The Journal of nutrition Vol. 115; no. 8; pp. 1073 - 1078
• Main Authors: Milne, David B., Ralston, Nick V.C., Wallwork, James C.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Bethesda, MD Elsevier Inc 01.08.1985; American Society for Nutritional Sciences
• Subjects: Animals; Biological and medical sciences; Blood Platelets - metabolism; Bone and Bones - metabolism; CINC; DEFICIENCY DISEASES; ENFERMEDADES CARENCIALES; ERITROCITOS; ERYTHROCYTE; erythrocyte zinc; ERYTHROCYTES; Erythrocytes - metabolism; EVALUACION; EVALUATION; Femur; LEUCOCITOS; LEUCOCYTE; leukocyte zinc; LEUKOCYTES; LINFOCITOS; Lymph Nodes - cytology; LYMPHOCYTE; lymphocyte zinc; LYMPHOCYTES; Lymphocytes - metabolism; MALADIE DE CARENCE; Male; Medical sciences; Metabolic diseases; Metals (hemochromatosis...); Monocytes - metabolism; Neutrophils - metabolism; Other metabolic disorders; platelet zinc; PLATELETS; Rats; Spleen - cytology; THROMBOCYTE; TROMBOCITOS; ZINC; Zinc - blood; Zinc - deficiency; Zinc - metabolism; zinc assessment; leukocyte zinc; platelet zinc; lymphocyte zinc; zinc; erythrocyte zinc; zinc assessment; Spleen; Vertebrata; Blood cell; Mammalia; Lymph node; Rat; Deficiency; Rodentia; Metabolic diseases; Inorganic element; Lymphocyte; Zinc
• ISSN: 0022-3166; 1541-6100
• DOI: 10.1093/jn/115.8.1073

Several investigators have suggested that the measurement of leukocyte zinc may be useful for the assessment of zinc nutriture. However, in an earlier study, we found that the methods used did not adequately separate platelets from the different leukocyte populations. We subsequently developed a method which does adequately separate platelets, mononucleated cells (MNC), polymorphonucleated cells (PMN), and erythrocytes (RBC) from a single blood sample. This method was applied to a study of severe zinc deficiency in adult male rats. Significant reductions in plasma and femur zinc indicated severe zinc deficiency in the zinc-deficient animals compared with pair-fed or ad libitum-fed control rats in two separate experiments. However, we noted no differences in the zinc content of the MNC, PMN, RBC or lymph node lymphocytes, on a per cell basis, between the zinc-deficient and ad libitum- or pair-fed control groups of rats. A minor, but not significant (P > 0.05) reduction of platelet zinc was noted in zinc-deficient rats in two separate studies. These data indicate that the zinc contents of blood cellular components are not sensitive indicators of zinc deficiency in rats.