AJP - Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, Vol 244, Issue 4 445-R454, Copyright © 1983 by American Physiological Society
Kinetics of trace element chromium(III) in the human body
T. H. Lim, T. Sargent 3rd and N. Kusubov
Chromium(III) has been reported to be an essential trace element involved
in the control of glucose metabolism by insulin. We have studied the
distribution and kinetics of intravenous [51Cr]chromium(III) in six human
subjects using a whole-body scintillation scanner, a whole-body counter,
and plasma counting. Principal concentrations were found in the liver,
spleen, soft tissue, and bone. The data were fit to a model consisting of a
plasma pool in equilibrium with fast (T1/2 = 0.5-12 h), medium (1-14 days),
and slow (3-12 mo) compartments, and transfer rates were calculated for
exchanges between compartments. Each of the imaged organs appeared to
contain varying proportions of each compartment. Two patients with
hemochromatosis, in which iron overload is postulated to exclude chromium
transport, were found to have altered rate constants. The results should be
useful in assessing the metabolism and nutritional requirement of
chromium(III) in humans and its importance in disease processes such as
diabetes.
