Intestinal iron absorption during turpentine sterile inflammation in the rat. Influences of isoproterenol and propranolol.

59Fe was incorporated in vivo into intestinal sacs prepared in control rats as well as in animals with turpentine sterile abscesses and 59Fe counts were detected in the intestinal wall, in blood, in liver, in spleen and in femur of animals, at different time intervals (20, 40 and 120 min) following i.v. injection of isoproterenol (10 micrograms/kg, body weight) or of (-)-propranolol (2 mg/kg, body weight). In rats without inflammation isoproterenol alone enhanced significantly iron counts in blood, spleen, liver and femur, but not in intestinal cells, whereas propranolol evoked opposite actions, the influence being more marked after 40 min, reaching maximal values at 120 min. In animals with sterile turpentine abscesses explored 40 min after injections, iron intestinal counts in turpentine, in turpentine plus isoproterenol and in turpentine plus propranolol groups were significantly lower than in normal saline injected controls (p less than 0.001) and the opposite was the case at 120 min. In blood, iron counts at 20 and 40 min were higher in saline controls (p less than 0.05) than in the turpentine group, whereas at 120 min, values in the turpentine plus isoproterenol group were higher than (p less than 0.01) in saline injected controls or in the group with turpentine alone. Also, at all time intervals explored, iron counts in blood in the propranolol plus turpentine group were smaller (p less than 0.01) than in saline injected controls or in the group with turpentine alone.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)