Plasma calcitonin in rats with renal failure

Sigmoidal relationship between calcitonin and calcium: studies in normal, parathyroidectomized, and azotemic rats

Calcitonin secretion is stimulated by acute hypercalcemia. Furthermore, in the rat, the calcemic response to parathyroid hormone (PTH) is decreased by calcitonin stimulation. However, in renal failure, it is not known if an increase in the serum calcium concentration within the physiologic range of serum calcium stimulates calcitonin and whether the increased calcitonin decreases the calcemic response to PTH. In the present study, four groups of pair-fed rats were evaluated: normals (N); parathyroidectomy (PTX); and two groups with renal failure (RF)--basal serum calcium less than 8.5 mg/dl (RFa) and basal serum calcium greater than 8.5 mg/dl (RFb). Hypocalcemia was induced by parathyroidectomy or in the RFa group, by a high phosphate diet. Increases in the serum calcium were produced by a 48 hour infusion of rat 1-34 PTH. In the RFa and PTX groups, stimulation of calcitonin was observed as the serum calcium increased from hypocalcemia to normal levels of calcium (P less than 0.01). In all four groups, increasing the serum calcium from normal levels to hypercalcemia increased the serum calcitonin level (P less than 0.05). The relationship between serum calcitonin and calcium was best expressed as a sigmoidal curve. In the two groups with basal hypocalcemia, PTX and RFa, the calcitonin-calcium curve was shifted to the left of the N and RFb groups.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Somatosensory evoked potentials in acute renal failure: effect of parathyroidectomy

Effects of acute renal failure (ARF) on somatosensory evoked potentials (SEP) were studied in rats. Cervical and cortical SEPs were measured both before and after bilateral ureteral ligation. A significant augmentation of amplitudes and an increase in latencies of the cortical SEP were observed in ARF. The peripheral nerve conduction velocities were unchanged. Serum parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels in uremic rats were significantly elevated after the bilateral ureteral ligation. In previously parathyroidectomized rats, the bilateral ureteral ligation had no effects on amplitudes of SEP or serum PTH levels.

Rapid changes of light microscopic indices of osteoclast-bone relationships correlated with electron microscopy

The relationships of tibial endosteal osteoclasts to bone surfaces were quantitatively evaluated during initiation of calcium repletion in calcium-deficient rats. To do this, indices of osteoclast-bone relationships obtained by light microscopy were devised and evaluated by comparing with those obtained by electron microscopy (EM). These indices are the percent of the osteoclast width that (1) exhibits markers indicative of a ruffled border, (2) is in close contact with bone, (3) is isolated from bone by other cell types, and (4) is separated from bone by intercellular material. The indices obtained by light microscopy were strongly correlated with similar indices obtained by EM and were equally sensitive but considerably easier to obtain. The ruffled border and contact index were significantly decreased by 3 hours after beginning the meal whereas cells of other types became interposed between the osteoclasts and the bone.