Renal 9-ketoprostaglandin reductase activity from rabbits fed 0.3 g or 2.5 g NaCl per 100 g chow was measured in both centrifuged homogenates and in purified enzyme fractions. There was no salt related increase in 9-ketoprostaglandin reductase activity. PGA1-glutathione, 9, 10-phenanthrenequinone, and 4-nitrobenzaldehyde were better substrates for the purified 9-ketoprostaglandin reductases than was PGE2. Several carbonyl reductases were isolated which used PGA1-glutathione, 9, 10-phenanthrenequinone, and 4-nitrobenzaldehyde, but not PGE2, as substrates. Although PGA1-glutathione was a more faithful indicator of PGE2-related 9-ketoprostaglandin reductase activity than either 9, 10-phenanthrenequione or 4-nitrobenzaldehyde, it did not always provide an accurate estimate of that activity.