Solubility of various inert gases in rat skeletal muscle.

For the determination of solubility coefficients, isolated rat abdominal muscles were equilibrated at 37 degrees C with various inert gases saturated with water vapor. After rapid transfer into a closed chamber containing room air the amount of gas extracted from the sample by diffusion was measured by gas chromatography. Corrections for unextracted gas and for gas lost during the transfer of the sample were applied. The following mean values for the solubility coefficients, in mumol-1(-1)-torr(-1), were found: chloro-difluoro-methane (Freon 22), 56.0; acetylene, 55.5; nitrous oxide, 27.7; methane, 2.42; hydrogen, 1.13; helium, 0.608; sulfur hexafluoride, 0.559. The relationships between solubility in tissue, in water and in olive oil are discussed.