Related Experiment Videos
Zinc and the sodium pump in uremia
The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
|October 1, 1978
Summary
Low plasma zinc is not the cause of abnormal sodium transport in uremic patients' leucocytes. While extracellular zinc affects cell membranes, it did not fully correct the sodium efflux defect in uremic cells.
Area of Science:
- Nephrology
- Cellular Physiology
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Uremic patients exhibit defects in leucocyte sodium transport.
- Extracellular zinc concentration influences cation flux rates.
- Uremia is associated with low plasma zinc levels.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if low plasma zinc causes the sodium transport defect in uremic leucocytes.
- To determine the role of extracellular zinc in uremic leucocyte sodium transport abnormalities.
Main Methods:
- Compared plasma and leucocyte zinc content in uremic patients and normal controls.
- Measured sodium efflux rate constants in leucocytes from both groups under varying extracellular zinc concentrations.
Main Results:
- Uremic patients had lower plasma zinc than controls, but leucocyte zinc content was similar.
- Elevated extracellular zinc increased sodium efflux in both normal and uremic leucocytes.
- Increased extracellular zinc did not fully normalize the sodium transport defect in uremic leucocytes.
Conclusions:
- Low plasma zinc is not the primary cause of defective sodium transport in uremic leucocytes.
- Extracellular zinc is a factor to control in membrane transport studies but does not fully explain the uremic defect.