Plasma and Urine Dopamine in Man Given Sodium Chloride in the Diet

1. Plasma and urine free dopamine were measured daily for 5 days in six normal subjects maintained on a low sodium diet. The subjects were then given dietary supplements of sodium chloride for 5 days and the measurements repeated.

2. Throughout the experiment the 24 h free dopamine excretion rates for all the subjects were higher than could be accounted for by renal clearance. Dopamine excretion increased significantly in response to the added sodium chloride whereas plasma dopamine remained unchanged. The rise in dopamine excretion preceded that of sodium excretion.

3. It is concluded that free dopamine is formed within the kidney in response to increased dietary sodium and may have a role in the control of sodium excretion.