Removal of Plutonium from Beagles Using Ca-DTPA and Zn-DTPA

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Abstract
Sixteen young adult beagles were each injected with 1 .mu.Ci 239Pu + 0.2 .mu.Ci 237Pu as Pu(IV) citrate and divided in 4 groups of 2 males and 2 females each. After .apprx. 1/2 h the 4 animals in group A were given an i.v. injection of 30 .mu.mol Ca-DTPA[diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid]/kg, the 8 animals in groups B and C were given 300 .mu.mol Zn-DTPA/kg, and the 4 in group D were given 34 .mu.mol Zn-DTPA/kg. Subsequent treatments for groups A, C and D consisted of single daily s.c. injections of 34 .mu.mol Zn-DTPA/kg, while group B received 6.8 .mu.mol Zn-DTPA/kg 5 times each day for a total of 34 .mu.mol/kg per day. Retention of Pu in the liver and in non-liver tissue of the living dogs was determined at 3, 7 and 14 days after radionuclide injection by a combination of total-body and partial-body counting. The dogs were sacrificed after 14 days, and the retention in livers and kidneys was measured. There was no significant differences in total-body retention at 2 wk among groups A, B and C (19, 23 and 26%, respectively), but each of these 3 groups was significantly lower than group D (48%). Liver content in group D (14.4%) was significantly higher than in groups A, B and C (5.5, 4.3 and 4.4%), among which there were no significant differences. Kidney content at death averaged 0.13% of injected Pu for dogs in all four groups and did not depend upon treatment. The relative distribution of retained skeletal Pu in a dog from group B was similar to that in other beagles injected as young adults with 237Pu or 239Pu, but not given DTPA, although the skeletal retention of injected Pu in the treated dog was only about 1/7 as much. Prompt treatment with 300 .mu.mol Zn-DTPA/kg, or especially 30 .mu.mol Ca-DTPA/kg, is apparently superior to 34 .mu.mol Zn-DTPA/kg in the dog and presumably also in man. For i.v. administered Pu, 5 injections each day of Zn-DTPA appear to have no greater effect than an equimolar amount given in a single daily injection.