RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TRAUMA, PLASMA CORTICOSTERONE AND RETICULOENDOTHELIAL FUNCTION IN ANAESTHETIZED MICE

Abstract

The plasma corticosterone (CS) was determined in anaesthetized (pentobarbital 60 mg/kg) mice subjected to thermal or mechanical trauma. Two hours after trauma the CS-level was about 4 times higher than that of the controls (17 μg/100 ml), after which it returned to normal within 24 hours. If mice were given doses of CS (10 or 100 μg) or ACTH (0.25 or 1.25 μg) which raised the plasma CS to the posttraumatic level, the reticuloendothelial (RES) function, as tested by the disappearance rate and organ uptake of heterologous ⁵¹Cr-tagged erythrocytes, was depressed as compared to the similarly anaesthetized control animals. A very good correlation was found between the increase in the plasma CS level and the decrease in the RES function in all groups except for that given 100 μg of CS. The results suggest that the previously reported post-traumatic RES depression is induced, at least partially, by a release of corticosteroids.