CADMIUM ACCUMULATION FROM DIETS WITH AND WITHOUT WHEAT BRAN IN RATS WITH DIFFERENT IRON STATUS

The purpose of the present study was to determine to what extent the accumulation of cadmium in rats with low, marginal and high iron status is affected by the presence of bran in the diet. High iron status caused the total and fractional accumulation of cadmium from both the wheat endosperm and wheat bran diets to be decreased by almost half compared to that in the low iron status rats. The inclusion of wheat bran in the diet increased the total accumulation of cadmium in the liver by approximately the same proportion in all three iron status groups. While the results do not exclude the possibility that the availability of cadmium for absorption from wheat bran is less than that from wheat endosperm in rats with high iron status, no appreciable effect of mineral binding factors in bran on the fractional cadmium accumulation in the liver could be demonstrated in the low and marginal iron status groups. Thus, for rats with less than adequate iron status, the inclusion of wheat bran in the diet should increase the cadmium intake and its accumulation in the body by the same proportion.