Cardiac glycoside effects on rat and guinea pig phospholipids

The phospholipid content of adrenal glands, heart, intestinal mucosa, kidney, liver, pancreas, plasma, skeletal muscle, and spleen was compared in adult male rats and guinea pigs after intraperitoneal injection of 0.15 M NaCl (saline), 40% propylene glycol-10% ethanol (vehicle), or digoxin (rats 1 mg/kg; guinea pigs 0.1 mg/kg). In control (untreated) rats and guinea pigs total phospholipid phosphorous was twice as high in cardiac muscle as in skeletal muscle (800 vs. 400 mug/g tissue); lysophosphatidyl choline (LPC) values were similar in the two tissues (24 vs. 21 mug/g) in guinea pig; 11 vs. 15 mug/g in rat). Comparative phospholipid values between the two animals were similar in all tissues except adrenal glands (rat approximately 1200 mug/g; guinea pig approximately 1900 mug/g) and plasma (rat approximately 32 mug/ml; guinea pig approximately 11 mug/ml). In digoxin treated compared to control rats no differences between individual phosphatides were noted in any of the tissues examined whereas in guinea pigs the same comparison revealed differences in 8 instances, 4 of which were in LPC. Phospholipid levels in both species changed as a result of saline and vehicle injection.