PLASMA PROTEIN-BOUND IODINE IN THE BEAVER AND OTHER ANIMALS

Abstract

The plasma protein-bound iodine of beavers in South Dakota was found to be 8.2 [plus or minus] 0.50 [mu]g/100 ml. This value was appreciably higher than that found in the following other species: man, rabbit, coyote, and fox pups, guinea pig, rat, musk rat, opossum, pig, spider monkey, hedgehog and hawk. The 24-hour radioactive iodine thyroid uptake in one beaver was 8%, the serum cholesterol 132 mg/100 ml and the serum inorganic iodine 3.0 [mu]g/100 ml (PBI = 7.1 [mu]g/100 ml). The radioiodine uptake and serum cholesterol in the spider monkey were quite similar to those of the beaver though the PBI was much lower (1.9 [plus or minus] 0.28 [mu]g/100 ml). The PBI was found to be significantly higher in dogs examined in October than those in March. Anaesthesia and/or various laboratory procedures caused a slight fall in PBI. The PBI was quite similar amongst pups of any given litter but varied considerably from litter to litter.