THE INTERRELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE PAROTID SECRETION OF THIOCYANATE, IODIDE, AND CHLORIDE

The salivary/serum ratios of both iodide and thiocyanate, which are inversely related to the rate of parotid secretion and which are normally above unity, are depressed by oral administration of perchlorate or thiocyanate but are not influenced by the administration of large doses of iodide. In contrast, parotid chloride concentration is directly related to the rate of secretion, is always lower than the blood concentration, and is not influenced by perchlorate, thiocyanate, or iodide administration.These results indicate that, although thiocyanate, iodide, and possibly perchlorate, but not chloride, may share a common transport mechanism in the parotid gland, this mechanism is easily saturated by thiocyanate and perchlorate but not by iodide.