Fluoride absorption from the rat urinary bladder: a pH-dependent event.

Urinary bladder absorption of stable and radiofluoride was studied as a function of pH in anesthetized rats to further evaluate the influence of pH gradients on fluoride transport. Buffered pH values and stable fluoride concentrations ranged from 1.85 to 7.90 and from 0.012 to 8.81 mM, respectively. [14c]inulin served as a marker for solute concentration changes due to water migration or dilution. The results indicate that bladder fluoride absorption is inversely related to pH over the 1.85-5.50 range. Mean, 15-min radiofluoride absorption values of 70% at pH 1,85, 37% at pH 3.95, and 5% at pH 5.50 WERE OBSERVED. These fractional absorption values were not significantly influenced by carrier fluoride concentration, the buffers used, or the presence of urine. Above pH 5.50, pH-independent absorption occurs to a slight extent. The results are consistent with a first-order absorptive process which occurs by the nonionic diffusion of hydrogen fluoride.