Accumulation Of Oxalate And Calcium In Organs During A Persistent Oxalate Challenge

The body's response to a persistent oxalate challenge is poorly understood. Here we report that calcium (measured by atomic absorbance spectrometry) increases in kidneys in rats exposed to a persistent challenge of 360 mu mole/d oxalate for 13D. Time dependent increases in renal concentrations of oxalate and calcium occurred for exposures of 12hr to 13D (p <= 0.02), but these oxalate and calcium concentrations were not intercorrelated (p=0.8). Since the calcium concentration was always at least five fold the oxalate concentration, it is unlikely that the entire calcium increase was due to its incorporation into calcium oxalate crystals.