The life span of the erythrocytes of normal and tumourbearing mice as determined by glycine-2-14C.

Abstract

Summary. The life span of the erythrocytes of healthy and of tumour‐bearing mice was determined with glycine‐2–14C as a tracer. The rate of destruction of the erythrocytes of healthy mice was found to be a function of the age of the erythrocytes. The average life span of the erythrocytes of healthy male TE mice varied between 40–46 days, the mean value was 42 days. The rorresponcling figure for healthy male C3H mice was 40 days. After the transplantation of an Ehrlich ascites carcinoma growing in the solid form, the average life span of the erythrocytes formed in healthy male TE mice was shortened to 26 days. The erythrocytes of cancerous mice were found to be destroyed at random. Their mean survival time was 14 days in inale TE mice bearing Ehrlich ascites carcinoma growing in the solid form and 16 days in female C3H mice bearing spontaneous mammary carcinoma. The rates of haemoglobin and red corpuscle formation and destruction were about 3 times the rates in healthy mice.