Cadmium Accumulation in Mice

Mice were fed four different cadmium compounds in six concentrations for various lengths of time.1) Cadmium accumulation in the liver and kidneys was the same after ingestion of cadmium chloride, cadmium sulfate and cadmium stearate, but lower after that of cadmium sulfide.2) Cadmium accumulation in the liver gradually increased as the period of ingestion lengthened.3) In the kidneys cadmium accumlated rapidly during the first month, but the rate of incrase showed to reach almost a steady state.4) The total body burden depended on the length of the period of administration, rather than the concentration of food ingested.5) The amount of accumulation of cadmium in the organs increased linearly up to about 5ppm of cadmium in the food and became almost steady at 50, 100, and 200ppm showing an asymptote curve. Thus, the relationship between cadmium concentration in food and accumulation in organs is not necessarily linear.