SILICON IN THE BLOOD-VESSEL WALL - BIOLOGICAL ENTITY

Frequent observations showing the presence of high Si-peaks in X-ray microanalytical spectra from Epon-embedded periphery blood vessels in the rat resulted in a more detailed and specific study of this problem. Experiments on two untreated, four metabolically disordered and four hypertensive rats are described from 411 measurements. Si was confined to the lumina of the vessels, the erythrocytes, the cytoplasm of endothelia and smooth muscle cells. The nuclei of all the cells analysed were found to be free, or nearly free, of Si. Acute hypertensive rats contained two to three times more Si than the control animals. The validity of these findings and values is discussed in relation to the possibility of artificial contamination, resolution problems and dislocation of ions, together with the pathogenic role of Si in hypertension and atherosclerosis. © 1979.