Distribution of copper in the rat

¹ Section of Biochemistry, Mayo Clinic and Mayo Foundation, Rochester, Minnesota

The concentrations of copper in organs of white male rats were measured. Highest concentrations were in the kidney (5.1 µg/g wet wt.), liver (4.4), heart (4.5), and pituitary (about 5). Hair contained about 30 µg/g. From the weights of the organs and their copper concentrations, the total copper contents of the organs and of the whole rat were calculated. The whole rat (250 g) contained slightly less than 0.5 mg, of which about half was in the skin and muscle. Balance studies indicated that approximately 300 µg of copper was excreted daily, almost exclusively in the feces. Relatively small amounts of copper were excreted in urine. When expressed as proportion of body weight, the weights of testes, pancreas, skin, and eyes were larger in the rat than in man, and adrenals, brain, and thyroid were considerably smaller.

Key Words: size of rat organs • copper in whole rat • copper in rat organs • copper balance in rat

Submitted on December 23, 1963