Abstract
Summary
Hypervitaminosis D in the rabbit induced widespread calcification of many organ systems unaccompanied by changes in concentration of calcium, ultrafiltrable calcium, citric acid or hexosamine in the serum. With a high dosage level, there was a conspicuous increase in serum level of inorganic phosphate, presumably secondary to renal damage. At a low dosage level where there was minimal renal damage and no change in the serum inorganic phosphorus or calcium, widespread soft tissue calcification occurred. These data indicate that, in the rabbit with hypervitaminosis D, metastatic calcification is not necessarily due to hypercalcemia or hyperphosphatemia. The vitamin induced an unexplained rise in level of β-2 globulin, a fraction split from the β-globulin when CaCl2 is added to the electrophoresis buffer.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.