Distribution of CO and Radiochromium in Blood and Tissues of Rabbit and Dog. I. Carbon Monoxide. ∗

Summary

1. Carbon monoxide gas and autogenous red cells tagged with Cr⁵¹ were administered simultaneously to rabbits and to dogs. Blood and homogenized tissues from various organs were analyzed for radioactivity and for CO content. 2. The volume of distribution of CO was 13% larger than the volume of distribution of Cr⁵¹ in the rabbit. The discrepancy is the same as that found in man and the splenectomized dog. 3. CO accumulated in red skeletal muscle and myocardium in amounts sufficient to account for the discrepancy between distribution volumes. 4. Evidence was found pointing to slight accumulation of Cr⁵¹ in spleen and lung. Further studies of this phenomenon are described in part II of this report.