The biosynthesis of metallothionein in rat liver and kidney after administration of cadmium

The biosynthesis of the cadmium-binding protein, metallothionein, was studied in rat liver and kidney after injection of cadmium chloride. A simplified procedure for the isolation of metallothionein from liver and kidney tissues was devised. It was found that the concentration of a subcutaneously injected dose of 30 μmoles of ¹⁰⁹CdCl₂/kg in the liver reached the maximum within 36 h. Thereafter, a slow decrease in the concentration of the isotope was noted during the 3 week period. In the kidney, the isotope was taken up in two phases. During the first phase the uptake was faster and lasted for about 4 days. The second phase of ¹⁰⁹Cd accumulation showed a slower increase in the concentration of the isotope. In both liver and kidney tissues 75–80% of the ¹⁰⁹Cd was associated with metallothionein. Amino acid incorporation studies revealed that active biosynthesis of metallothionein took place in the kidney as well as in the liver of cadmium-exposed rats. The turnover of ³⁵S-labeled metallothionein was also investigated and the half-lives of the hepatic and the renal metallothionein were found to be 2.8 and 5 days, respectively.