Effects of dietary copper supplementation of rats on the occurrence of metallothionein-I in liver and its secretion into blood, bile and urine.
The appearance and excretion of metallothionein-I (MT-I) was studied in rats given a diet containing 1000 mg of Cu/kg for several weeks. No significant increase in MT-I concentrations in liver, plasma or bile was detected in rats with liver copper concentrations less than 600 micrograms of Cu/g fresh wt. Above this concentration, liver MT-I concentrations increased in proportion to the increase in hepatic copper content. Plasma and bile MT-I concentrations were directly related to those in the liver and were about 10 times those in normal rats. Urinary MT-I concentration also increased 10-fold within 1 week. Fractionation of bile and urine on Sephadex G-50 revealed the presence of monomeric MT-I and a range of possible degradation products of the isoprotein.
D000818:Animals; D001646:Bile / Q000378:metabolism; D002850:Chromatography, Gel; D003300:Copper / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology*; D003429:Cross Reactions; D008099:Liver / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D008668:Metallothionein / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000652:urine; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000276:immunology; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains
D010446:Peptide Fragments; D003300:Copper; D008668:Metallothionein