. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2010 Feb 22.

Published in final edited form as: Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2003 Feb;44(2):672–679. doi: 10.1167/iovs.02-0018

Table 2.

Concentration of Elements in Human Lenses from Individuals of Different Ages

	Age Group (mean)
Element	Young (32.8 y)	Middle (52.3 y)	Old (70.5 y)
Sodium	8267 ± 931	6632 ± 798	8326 ± 859
Potassium	4479 ± 468	5478 ± 1007	5574 ± 326
Magnesium	176.5 ± 3.0	180.2 ± 20.2	148.2 ± 15.3
Calcium	119.7 ± 28.1	78.0 ± 21.6	136.0 ± 37.7
Zinc	32.15 ± 9.39	25.82 ± 3.45	25.79 ± 3.96
Iron	12.42 ± 0.21^a	10.67 ± 2.07^a	2.22 ± 1.21^b
Copper	1.094 ± 0.168	0.677 ± 0.029	0.949 ± 0.304
Cadmium	ND^*	ND	ND

Data are concentrations (μg/g) ± SE (n = 3). Superscript letters denote significant differences by the Tukey-Kramer HSD comparison. Nine groups of five lenses each were digested and assessed for metal concentration by ICP and the results expressed in micrograms of metal per gram of dry lens. ND, not detectable.

Below the level of detection (<0.191 μg/L).