Effects of diethyldithiocarbamate and selected analogs on cadmium metabolism following chronic cadmium ingestion

Effects of ip treatment with diethyldithiocarbamate (DDTC), 4- carboxamidopiperidine-N-dithiocarboxylate (CAP-N-DTC), and N-methyl-N- dithiocarboxyglucamine (MDCG) on cadmium (Cd) levels in selected mouse organs and tissues were assessed after mice were offered deionized water containing 0.05 mg/ml of CdCl2 x 2.5 H2O, 10 mg/ml of sucrose, and 0.125 microCi/ml of carrier-free 109CdCl2 as the sole drinking fluid for 15 days. Only 0.31 +/- 0.01 % of the ingested Cd was absorbed. Data obtained following treatment were compared with those obtained earlier in similar studies following ip Cd injection. In contrast to its action when administered after ip Cd injection, DDTC enhanced hepatic Cd burdens in mice which received Cd po. DDTC did, however, reduce renal Cd levels markedly after Cd ingestion, while enhancing brain Cd levels. CAP- N-DTC and MDCG, which were shown earlier to have no effect on Cd levels in striated muscle following ip Cd administration, effected significant reduction of muscle Cd concentrations after Cd administration po, while also reducing hepatic and renal Cd levels significantly. It was concluded that certain dithiocarbamates effectively mobilize and promote excretion of Cd which has been absorbed from one of the natural portals of entry