Mineral metabolism of the healing arterial wall

The mineral metabolism of healing arterial walls was studied by measuring the accumulation of several radioisotopes at the site of vascular repair in rats. Each rat was subjected to a 1-cm full-thickness aortotomy and then immediately injected by tail vein with c 5 muCi of one of the following radioisotopes: chromic chloride Cr 51 or sodium chromate Cr 51; ferrous chloride Fe 59 or ferric chloride Fe 59; manganous chloride Mn 54; selenious acid Se 75; strontium chloride Sr 85; or zinc chloride Zn 65. At intervals of 1, 2, 4, 6, and 10 days after operation and injection, groups of four rats for each radioisotope were killed, aortas dissected, and the specific radioactivity of healing vascular tissue compared with that of adjacent normal artery. There were sharp and statistically significant differences in the preferential accumulation of the radioisotopes in healing compared with normal aorta. Zinc appeared to be the element most involved in vascular repair, followed by selenium and chromium.