Royal Academy of Medicine in Ireland section of biological sciences Proceedings of Summer Meeting held at University of Ulster at Jordanstown, 22nd & 23rd June, 1990

In this study, two levels of dietary iron (Fe), 15 mg/kg (LFe) and 400 mg/kg (HFe), were fed to 12 male and 12 female weanling Sprague-Dawley rats for 42 days. Animals were anaesthetised with ether and sacrificed by exsanguination using cardiac puncture. Plasma lipids and iron indices were measured and the data analysed by two-way analysis of variance using iron and sex as main effects. As expected, plasma Fe was significantly higher (p<0.001) in HFe rats (mean, 2.32; SE, 0.13 mg/1), compared with the LFe rats (mean, 1.52; SE, 0.28 mg/1). Plasma Fe was significantly higher (p<0.001) in female rats (mean, 2.48; SE, 0.20 mg/1) compared with the males (mean, 1.36; SE, 0.18 mg/1), and transferrin saturation (TS) was significantly higher (p<0.01) in females, with a mean of 48% (SE, 4.5 ), in comparison with the male group mean of 29% (S E, 4.1). (TS) was also significantly higher (p<0.01) in the HFe rats, with a mean of 47% (SE, 3.1) compared with 29% (SE, 5.4) in the LFe rats. Plasma cholesterol (CHOL), and triglycerides (TRIG) were significantly higher (p<0.001) in the HFe rats, (CHOL; HFe, mean, 1.47; SE 0.07; LFe, mean, 1.20; SE, 0.08 mmol/l: TRIG; HFe, 1.32; SE, 0.07; LFe, mean, 0.93; SE, 0.08 mmol/1). CHOL was also significantly higher (p<0.001) in males (males, 1.53; SE, 0.05; females, 1.15; SE, 0.06 mmol/1). These results indicate that there may be sex differences in the relationship between Fe status and plasma lipids which appear consistent with a role for dietary Fe in the aetiology of (IHD).