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Updated: Jul 4, 2026

Measurement of Tissue Non-Heme Iron Content using a Bathophenanthroline-Based Colorimetric Assay
Published on: January 31, 2022
Relationship between plasma iron concentration and gastric pH in captive adult bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops
Mark A Mitchell1, Moby A Solangi, Connie L Clemons-Chevis
1Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA.
Objective:
To determine the correlation between plasma iron concentrations and gastric pH in a population of captive Atlantic bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus).
Animals:
6 adult female dolphins that ranged from 16 to 30 years of age.
Procedures:
Blood and gastric samples were collected from each dolphin to allow measurement of plasma iron concentrations and gastric pH, respectively. Samples were collected each month for 12 months.
Results:
Within each dolphin, plasma iron concentrations and gastric pH did not differ significantly over time. There was a strong negative correlation (r = -0.85) between plasma iron concentration and gastric pH, which suggested that dolphins with a lower gastric pH had a higher plasma iron concentration.
Conclusions And Clinical Relevance:
Analysis of results reported here suggested that gastric pH may play an important role in iron absorption in dolphins.
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