Erythrocyte and bile protoporphyrin levels are elevated in heterozygous mice.
(A) Whole blood was isolated from tail vein of normal and heterozygous mice. Fluorescence of erythrocytes was detected by exciting an blood smear with 405-nm light. Images were captured with a Spot digital camera using an Olympus IX70, × 200 magnification. Genotypes are indicated to the left of the figures. (B) Erythrocyte and (C) bile protoporphyrin levels were determined by HPLC separation of pigments with subsequent spectrofluorometric analysis. The genotypes and number of mice represented in the data are indicated below the x-axis. Average activities (cross-bars) and SEs (vertical lines) are indicated. (SEM for free erythrocyte protoporphyrin +/+ = 1.8 × 104, +/−= 3.38 × 104; for bile, +/+ = 1.36 × 103, +/−= 3.14 × 103;P < .001).
