Iron mobilization in estrogenized male quail

A single diethylstilbestrol (DES) injection (5 mg DES/100 g body wt) was administrated to several lots (three specimens each) of adult male quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica). The birds were sacrificed 24, 48, 72 and 96 hr after the DES injection. A significant increase in liver weight and a clear drop in the hemoglobin concentration were observed after 24 hr. Later, a progressive rise was observed in plasma iron, total iron binding capacity, plasma copper and the phosphoprotein (vitellogenin), which reached highest values after 96 hr. In the liver, the iron showed an initial increase (24 hr), due to a rise in non-ferritin iron followed by a progressive decrease. Ferritin iron increased slowly but was significantly higher after 96 hr. This experimental model on male quail suggests an estrogen response in birds that could be more general and uniform than in mammals.