Abstract
A modified starch, dicarboxyl starch (DCS), was prepared from potato starch by periodate oxida-tion following chlorite oxidation. The compound had the binding ability to metals in vitro. Under the lower nutritional level (10% casein and lower level of calcium and phosphorous), rats were fed with diets containing strontium or cadmium with or without DCS for several weeks. The growth rates of rats fed diets containing cadmium (0.005 and 0.02%) seemed to be improved by the addition of DCS. Strontium concentration in the tibia and cadmium in the liver were decreased by the addition of either 2 or 3% DCS to the diet. Strontium concentration of the tibia of rats fed the strontium diet without DCS was significantly higher than that of rats fed the strontium diet with DCS. These results indicate that DCS added to diet seemed to prevent the intestinal absorption of strontium or cadmium in rats.
