Inhibition of glutathione reductase by cadmium ion in some rabbit tissues and the protective role of dietary selenium.

This study is aimed at investigating the inhibitory effect of cadmium ion on glutathione reductase activity of rabbit brain and liver and the relationship of this effect with dietary selenium. For this purpose, one group of New Zealand rabbits were fed a selenium-deficient diet, another group was fed a selenium-rich diet, and the control group was fed a normal diet. The brain and liver tissues of these groups were investigated for the in vitro inhibitory effects of Cd2+ on glutathione reductase activity. For liver, the percentage inhibition of glutathione reductase by 40 nmol/mg protein of Cd2+ was similar for selenium-deficient and control groups, but significantly lower in the selenium-rich group. For brain tissues, there was no difference with respect to cadmium inhibition of glutathione reductase in all three groups.