The measurement of blood flow in mouse femur and its correlation with 239Pu deposition.

The concentration of 18F was measured in three parts of the femur and in the blood of 36 mice killed at intervals of from 1 min to 2 h after intravenous injection. Blood supply to the bone sections, calculated by dividing the increase in 18F concentration in bone by the integral of 18F concentration in blood between selected time intervals, was shown to be unaffected by the return of 18F from bone to blood at times earlier than 90 min following injection. The supply of blood per unit mass of bone was greatest in distal end of the femur, less in proximal end and least in shaft. In whole femur average blood flow was 230 mm3 per gram fresh bone per min. The deposition of 239Pu in three parts of the mouse femur was shown to be linearly related to blood flow and the nature of the relationship is discussed.