Rhodanese (thiosulfate:cyanide sulfurtransferase) distribution in the digestive tract of chicken.

In this study the level of rhodanese (thiosulfate:cyanide sulfurtransferase) activity in different regions of the digestive tract of chicken was determined and compared with that in the liver, heart, kidney, and lung. All tissues studied contained rhodanese. The highest specific activity of rhodanese was in the submucosal layer of proventriculus, followed by liver, heart, the mucosal layer of cecum, rectum, and kidney. The lowest level was present in lung. These results suggest that in the chicken part of the ingested cyanide is detoxified in the digestive tract, mainly by the proventriculus, and part of the absorbed cyanide is metabolized by hepatic rhodanese.