THE DISTRIBUTION OF HG203-LABELED MERCAPTOMERIN IN HUMAN TISSUES 12

Abstract

Forty to 80 mg of Hg as Hg203 -labeled mercaptomerin sodium was given parenterally to 9 terminally ill patients, and tissue analyses were performed 1.25 to 576 hours later at autopsy. In all cases the kidneys contained Hg. The highest concentration was 70 [mu]g/g of wet tissue; most of the values ranged between 1.2 and 9.4 [mu]g/g- The concentration in the kidneys was approximately 3 times highes than that in the liver[long dash]the tissue with the next highest concentration. Tissue from renal cortex con- tained approximately twice as much Hg per gram as that from medulla. The concentration appeared to be dependent upon the quantity and the quality of the renal parenchyma.