Effects of heavy metals instilled intratracheally into rats. II. Changes in element concentrations in the lung after instillation of cadmium chloride.

Abstract

Cadmium chloride dissolved in physiological saline (0.4 ml) was instilled intratracheally into male Wistar rats (10 weeks old ; body weight, approximately 270 g) at eight doses (40-0.313 μg Cd/rat). Concentrations of elements (calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, sulfur and zinc) in the lung were determined along with cadmium by inductively coupled argon plasma-atomic emission spectrometry (ICP) and/or flameless Zeeman atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The body weight decreased significantly, while the lung weight increased significantly at doses higher than 5.0 μg Cd/rat. Changes in lung weight and element concentrations suggested that lung edema was induced at a dose of as low as 2.5 μg Cd/rat. Distributions of copper and zinc in the supernatants of the lungs were determined on a gel permeation column by high performance liquid chromatography-ICP, indicating that superoxide dismutase in the lung decreased with a cadmium instillation at doses higher than 2.5 μg Cd/rat.