Sato M, Mehra R K, Bremner I
J Nutr. 1984 Sep;114(9):1683-9. doi: 10.1093/jn/114.9.1683.
These studies were designed to investigate the effects of stress and of changes in zinc status on plasma and liver concentrations of metallothionein-I (MT-I) in rats and to assess the value of plasma MT-I assays in the diagnosis of zinc deficiency. No MT-I was detected by radioimmunoassay in the plasma or liver of rats made hypozincaemic by feeding diets with less than 1 or 3 mg Zn/kg. Injection of normal rats with endotoxin or CCl4 also decreased plasma zinc levels, but these treatments greatly increased MT-I concentrations in both liver and plasma. Moreover plasma MT-I levels in zinc-deprived rats given endotoxin were only slightly greater than those in untreated rats of normal zinc status. Neither plasma zinc nor MT-I levels were altered in starved rats despite increased levels of the protein in the liver, although a slight increase in plasma MT-I was found in rats pair-fed with zinc-deficient animals. It appears therefore that reduced plasma levels of both zinc and MT-I are indicative of a zinc deficiency state and that assay of plasma MT should be of value in the diagnosis of zinc deficiency.
这些研究旨在调查应激以及锌状态变化对大鼠血浆和肝脏中金属硫蛋白-I（MT-I）浓度的影响，并评估血浆MT-I检测在锌缺乏诊断中的价值。通过喂食锌含量低于1或3mg/kg的饲料使大鼠出现低锌血症，采用放射免疫分析法在这些大鼠的血浆或肝脏中未检测到MT-I。给正常大鼠注射内毒素或四氯化碳也会降低血浆锌水平，但这些处理会使肝脏和血浆中的MT-I浓度大幅增加。此外，给缺锌大鼠注射内毒素后，其血浆MT-I水平仅略高于正常锌状态的未处理大鼠。饥饿大鼠的血浆锌和MT-I水平均未改变，尽管肝脏中该蛋白水平有所升高，不过在与缺锌动物配对喂养的大鼠中发现血浆MT-I略有增加。因此，似乎血浆锌和MT-I水平降低均表明处于锌缺乏状态，血浆MT检测在锌缺乏诊断中应具有价值。
