Determination of zinc in tissues of normal and dystrophic mice using electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry and slurry sampling

An electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometric procedure for zinc determination in animal tissues is first optimized and then used to measure the metal content of different tissues from normal and dystrophic mice. The procedure involves minimal manipulation of the sample to overcome the severe contamination problems normally associated with the measurement of low zinc levels. The samples (recommended amount 10 mg) are slurried in 2 ml of a 10-mM tetramethylammonium hydroxide solution containing 0.1 g/100 ml silicone antifoam. After mild heating at 60 °C for 10 min and homogenization for 1 min, the suspensions are submitted to a 10-fold dilution and then injected into the electrothermal atomizer. Calibration is carried out using aqueous standard solutions of zinc prepared in the same suspension media. The reliability of the whole procedure is verified using three certified reference materials.