Metabolism of trace amounts of vanadium 48 in rat organs and liver subcellular particles

Abstract

Timed distribution studies were made of trace amounts of intravenously injected V48 in selected organs and in liver subcellular particles of rats. No significant difference was seen either in the rate or amount of uptake of the 3 oxidation states of V48 up to 4 hr. and subsequently retained most of this radioactivity up to 96 hr., at which time other major organs contained only 14[long dash]84% of their 10-min. value. At 96 hr. after injection, 46% of the isotope had been excreted in the urine and 9% in the feces. Radioactivity in the liver subcellular supernatant fraction decreased from 57 to 11% of the liver radioactivity by 96 hr., whereas the mitochondrial and nuclear fractions increased from approximately 14 to 40%. The microsomal fraction changed little. Marked liver retention of V48 was probably due to its movement into the mitochondrial and nuclear fractions.