Measurement of Hypozincaemia in Mice: A Sensitive Test for Detection of Pyrogens

Abstract

1. The effect of bacterial pyrogens on plasma zinc concentration in mice was studied as a method of bioassay for these substances. 2. A dose-related depression of plasma zinc concentrations was observed 4 h after intravenous injection of doses of 0.05-500 ng of purified endotoxins of Salmonella abortus equi, Shigella dysenteriae and Escherichia coli. Responses were dose-dependent and reproducible for each endotoxin in five strains of mice. 3. Tolerance to endotoxin could be induced in mice by injection of doses of 500 ng but was not seen with doses of less than 5 ng, even after repeated treatment. 4. Dinitrophenol, a metabolic inhibitor, and amphetamine, a metabolic enhancer, did not affect plasma zinc levels, indicating that changes in basal metabolic rate do not affect the outcome of this assay. The effects of pyrogenic materials other than endotoxin on plasma zinc levels were also tested and the results suggest that measurement of hypozincaemia in mice provides the basis for a simple, practical and inexpensive test for endotoxins and other pyrogens.

Molecular and functional characterization of the voltage‐gated proton channel in zebrafish neutrophils

“…Assuming the serum Zn 2+ concentration has an impact on the physiological function of Hv1, it would be important to compare the serum Zn 2+ concentrations in mice and zebrafish. After collecting blood from adult animals of both species and measuring the total serum Zn 2+ concentration, we found that it is 20.6 ± 2.77 μ mol/L ( n = 6) in mouse, which is consistent with earlier studies (Boobis and Hartley ). In contrast, the serum Zn 2+ concentration in zebrafish is 153 ± 51.2 μ mol/L ( n = 10).…”