Effect of iron and/or vitamin A re-supplementation on vitamin A and iron status of rats after a dietary deficiency of both components

Iron and vitamin A deficiency are common nutritional problems in developing countries. From animal experiments and intervention studies, growing evidence is pointing to a possible influence of iron on vitamin A metabolism. We assessed the affects of an oral supplementation of vitamin A and/or iron on the recovery of rats from vitamin A and iron deficiency. Weanling male Wistar rats were kept for four weeks on an iron and vitamin A deficient diet. Thereafter, rats were repleted with iron 35 mg/kg feed, with vitamin A 4500 IU/kg feed both, or with iron 35 mg/kg and vitamin A 4500 IU/kg for five weeks. Retinol and retinyl esters in plasma and tissues were determined by HPLC. Iron was determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The determination of haematological parameters showed that rats developed an anaemia during depletion. This was reversed by the re-supplementation with iron but not vitamin A atone. The simultaneous supplementation of vitamin A was of no additional benefit. When rats were re-supplemented with iron atone a substantial further decrease in plasma retinol (P < 0.002) and liver vitamin A (P < 0.05) was observed. A similar but less pronounced decrease in plasma retinol was observed in the rats re-supplemented with vitamin A atone, despite a substantial increase in liver vitamin A (P < 0.002). Despite lower liver vitamin A levels compared to the group re-supplemented with vitamin A atone, the group re-supplemented with iron and vitamin A had substantial higher plasma levels compared to the one supplemented with iron atone (P < 0.002). In conclusion, the study supports an interaction of iron and vitamin A on the level of retinol transport in plasma. Despite a comparable availability of vitamin A as indicated by the comparable liver levels only the re-supplementation of both iron and vitamin A can normalize the retinol level in plasma. This might be of nutritional consequence in developing countries with regard to the supplementation regime of both nutrients iron and vitamin A to prevent a functional deficiency of vitamin A despite sufficient dietary availability.