In Vitro Studies of 59Fe Absorption by Everted Intestinal Sacs of the Rat

Iron-59 transport was studied in vitro using everted gut sacs or intestinal segments. A definite concentration of iron in the mucosa was noted but there was little transfer into the inner pouch fluid. Saturation of the transport mechanism was not demonstrable over a wide range of iron concentrations. Mucosal uptake was significantly decreased by certain metabolic inhibitors. Ascorbic acid increased uptake at low, but not high, iron concentrations. Both ferrous and ferric iron were concentrated at about the same rate by mucosal cells. Under our experimental conditions muscosal and pouch fluid iron uptakes were not consistently altered in rats with anemia induced by phenylhydrazine injections or by dietary means.