AN ACCURATE METHOD FOR THE ESTIMATION OF LOW CONCENTRATIONS OF DEXTRAN IN PLASMA

Abstract

A method is presented for the determination in plasma of small (50-150 mg./100 ml.) amounts of dextran. The procedure, which requires between 3 and 4 hours, consists of protein precipitation, glucose removal by dialysis, and the determination of the carbohydrate concentration of the resulting aqueous extract by a modified anthrone technique. Results of in vitro tests show that average dextran recovery is essentially 100% and that standard deviations in recovery range from 1.7 to 2.5% depending upon the dextran concentration. Deviations are reduced to a range of 1.4-1.7% by the use of duplicate plasma samples.