Studies of Sulfate in Children with Chronic Renal Failure

Abstract

Inorganic plasma sulfate (SO4)derives mainly from the metabolic breakdown of sulfur-containing amino acids. Most of the ingested sulfur is excreted as SO4 by the kidneys, the remainder being incorporated into glycosaminoglycans and sulfatides or needed for the detoxification of various compounds. The plasma concentration of SO4 is regulated by the kidney, since it is freely filtered by the glomerulus (Goudsmit et al. 1939) and actively reabsorbed by the proximal tubule (Ullrich et al. 1980). The renal handling of SO4 in chronic renal failure has been studied in only a few clinical investigations (Hayman and Johnson 1932; Hanze 1966), and none of them deals with children. Investigations of SO4 metabolism in chronic renal failure seems to be of special interest in children because of the higher protein turnover during growth.