Single-injection method for evaluation of renal function with 3H-inulin and 14C-tetraethylammonium bromide in conscious unrestrained Sprague-Dawley rats

• Published in: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association Vol. 189; no. 9; p. 1044
• Main Authors: Radin, M J, Fettman, M J, Wilke, W L
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.11.1986
• Subjects: Animals; Blood Flow Velocity - veterinary; Glomerular Filtration Rate - veterinary; Inulin; Male; Rats; Rats, Inbred Strains - physiology; Regression Analysis; Renal Circulation; Tetraethylammonium Compounds
• ISSN: 0003-1488

A single-injection, double-isotope method for simultaneously determining glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and effective renal plasma flow (ERPF) in conscious, unrestrained rats was evaluated. 3H-inulin and 14C-tetraethylammonium bromide were used to determine GFR and ERPF, respectively. Using a modified, single exponential, 1-compartment, mathematical model, solute clearance was estimated, using a plasma radioactivity disappearance curve constructed from samples collected during a 60-minute period. In 12 healthy, conscious, adult male Sprague-Dawley rats, the mean (+/- SEM) GFR, ERPF, and filtration fraction were 5.65 +/- 0.40 ml/min/kg, 13.92 +/- 0.82 ml/min/kg, and 0.41 +/- 0.03, respectively. In 7 adult male Sprague-Dawley rats that had undergone a three-quarter nephrectomy 6 weeks prior to study, the mean GFR, ERPF, and filtration fraction were 2.69 +/- 0.36 ml/min/kg, 7.02 +/- 0.90 ml/min/kg, and 0.39 +/- 0.03, respectively. In 37 adult male rats in various stages of renal disease, the mean GFR and ERPF correlated significantly (r = 0.85, P less than 0.001 and r = 0.83, P less than 0.001, respectively) with the reciprocal of plasma creatinine. The single-injection, double-isotope technique yielded functional values similar to those reported for healthy rats in which other clearance methods were used. Using this technique, we were able to detect alterations associated with various degrees of renal functional loss. The technique enabled us to evaluate conscious, unrestrained rats, eliminated the need to collect urine, and required short blood collection times (60 min) and small volumes (0.1 ml) of plasma.