Abstract
Female rats were given a low-Ca diet /0.05%/ during the 2nd, 3rd and 4th week of the nursing period. The litters consisted of 8 animals. In the mother rats, the progressive loss of bone tissue was shown by microradiography of undecalcified sections of the femur and by carcass analysis. At the end of the experimental period the cross-sectional area of corcital bone of femoral midshaft had been reduced to 46 % of its original size. Body-Ca was 54 % of normal at that time. Bone resorption occurred mainly at the sites where resorption is normally seen, i.e. at the endosteal surfaces of the bone. The trabecular bone of the metaphysis and epiphysis almost completely disappeared in 3 weeks time. After weaning, the animals were given a normal diet and killed 3 weeks later. In this period of time bone formation occurred rapidly at the endosteal surfaces. Three weeks after weaning, the cortical area of the femoral midshaft was 78 % of normal, whereas body-Ca was 79 % of normal. Interesting features were the low mineral density of the new bone and the formation of osteone-like structures, normally absent in the rat.
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Steendijk, R. SEVERE ACUTE CALCIUM DEPLETION IN LACTATING RATS. Pediatr Res 9, 857 (1975). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197511000-00034
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197511000-00034
