[Relations between the supply of vitamin D and accumulation of Pb in chickens]

Lead accumulation in the body of 25-day-old chickens was studied depending on the dose of lead and the presence of vitamin D in the diet. It was found that with the increase of the dose of lead (40, 100 and 200 mg/kg feed), its level in the blood, bones, kidneys and liver grows. Introduction of vitamin D in the diet (500 IU per kg) considerably raises the content of lead in the blood (from 212 to 284 micrograms/100 ml) in bone tissues (from 29.4 to 242.7 mg per g dry substance). Single injection of vitamin D to rachitic chickens also promotes lead accumulation in the tissues. Thus a conclusion may be drawn that vitamin D stimulates lead accumulation.