THE STORAGE OF ARSENIC IN RATS FED A DIET CONTAINING CALCIUM ARSENATE AND ARSENIC TRIOXIDE

¹ Division of Pharmacology, Food and Drug Administration, United States Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

1. When either calcium arsenate or arsenic trioxide was ingested at a low level of 215 mgm. of arsenic per kilogram of diet, large quantities of arsenic were stored as revealed by analyses of whole animals, as well as of individual organs.

2. The liver and kidneys stored by far the largest amounts per gram of dry weight.

3. The livers of the experimental animals of the calcium arsenate series were 41 per cent larger than those of the controls, while the brains were 8 per cent smaller. When statistically analyzed, these values are very significant.

4. Much larger amounts of arsenic were stored in animals receiving calcium arsenate than in those receiving arsenic trioxide when fed at the same level.