Total body nitrogen analysis

Abstract

Studies of two potential in vivo neutron activation methods for determining total and partial body nitrogen in animals and humans are described. A method using the CO-11 in the expired air as a measure of nitrogen content was found to be adequate for small animals such as rats, but inadequate for human measurements due to a slow excretion rate. Studies on the method of measuring the induced N-13 in the body show that with further development, this method should be adequate for measuring muscle mass changes occurring in animals or humans during space flight.