Abstract
Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats maintained under a fixed light-dark cycle were used to evaluate the effects of lithium on adrenocortical function. Rats were injected with lithium (2.5 mEq/kg) or saline each day at 09:00 and 16:00 hr. One group received lithium or saline for 2 days and the other for 7 days. Animals were sacrificed by decapitation 4 hr after the last injection and trunk blood was collected. Plasma corticosterone concentrations were measured by radioimmunoassay and lithium concentration by flame photometry. After 2 days of lithium administration (plasma lithium concentration: 0.88 ± 0.06 mEq/L), there was no effect on the plasma concentration of corticosterone. Continued injection of lithium for 7 days (plasma lithium concentration: 3.41 ± 0.49) caused a significant (ANOVA: p < 0.05) increase in plasma corticosterone concentration. The results suggest a chronic lithium therapy-induced stimulation of adrenocortical function.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 809-810 |
| Number of pages | 2 |
| Journal | IRCS Medical Science |
| Volume | 11 |
| Issue number | 9 |
| State | Published - 1983 |
| Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology