Variations in the response of the thyroid gland of the rat to different low-iodine diets: correlation with iodine content of diet.

Large variations are frequently encountered in the thyroidal responses of rats to commercially available low-iodine diets. The major aim of this investigation was to attempt to correlate these variations with differences in the iodine content of the diets. A method was developed for measuring the iodine content of low-iodine diets which was sufficiently sensitive to discriminate between a diet containing 15-20 ng of iodine per g and one containing 30-40 ng of iodine per g. Large differences were observed between various commercial low-iodine diets in their ability to induce goiter and to affect other indices of thyroid function, and these differences could be correlated with differences in the iodine content. The most severe iodine deficiency occurred in rats that were fed a Remington diet containing 15-20 ng of iodine per g. After 3 months on this diet, thyroid weight increased about 7-fold, thyroid 127I concentration was reduced to about 0.5% of control values, serum thyroxine (T4) was reduced to less than 0.25 mug/100 ml, the ratio of labeled triiodothyronine to labeled T4 was increased to 5.2, and that of labeled monoiodotyrosine to labeled diiodotyrosine was increased to 4.2. Much smaller changes were observed in the rats on the other low-iodine diets, which ranged from 30-40 to about 100 ng of iodine per g. A daily supplement of only 0.2 mug of iodide per day administered to rats on a Remington low-iodine diet produced a significant changes in thyroidal responses. These results suggest that iodine deficiency alone is sufficient to explain the effects of the Remington low-iodine diet and that it is not necessary to postulate the presence of a goitrogen.