ABSTRACT
The worldwide use of acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) as an analgesic-antipyretic drug, including during pregnancy, prompted us to investigate its potentially deleterious effects in that condition. Pregnant rats were treated with ASA (1, 10 or 100 mg/kg once a day) from the first day up to term pregnancy. No histological changes were noticed in maternal and fetal livers or kidneys when examined under light microscopy, but some definite dose-dependent effects of ASA were observed on electron microscopy examination. In livers and kidneys of pregnant rats treated with the highest doses of ASA we observed cytoplasmic derangement, mitochondrial cristolysis and abnormally shaped rough endoplasmic reticulum. Similarly, in foetal livers and kidneys from this group we observed degenerative cytoplasmic vacuoles and ballooned mitochondria with cristae derangement and myelin figures. Our data point out the fact that both maternal and foetal tissues can be importantly affected by ASA at the ultrastructural level, without overt signs of toxicity.
Subject(s)
Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal/administration & dosage , Aspirin/administration & dosage , Kidney/drug effects , Kidney/ultrastructure , Liver/drug effects , Liver/ultrastructure , Animals , Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal/adverse effects , Aspirin/adverse effects , Female , Kidney/embryology , Liver/embryology , Pregnancy , Rats , Rats, WistarABSTRACT
The antiviral effect of azidothymidine (AZT) can be potentiated by acyclovir (ACV), and this drug association has been used in the management of HIV-infected patients. In the present study we examined the effects of this association on the livers and kidneys of both pregnant rats and their concepts. Previous data from this laboratory suggested that the deleterious effects of ACV on rat pregnancy are due to its extraplacental actions and these are, at least in part, counteracted by concomitant treatment with AZT. Kidneys and livers of pregnant rats were noticed to be much more sensitive to the toxic action of the drugs than those of their concepts, ACV eliciting much more evident morphological alterations than did AZT. Contrary to what was expected, in the group of rats treated with both drugs AZT was not able to diminish the severity of the alterations evoked by ACV. The proposed "protective" action of AZT against the abortive effect of ACV on rat pregnancy does not seem to be exerted through a renal or hepatic pathway.
Subject(s)
Acyclovir/toxicity , Antiviral Agents/adverse effects , Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury , Kidney Diseases/chemically induced , Pregnancy Complications , Zidovudine/toxicity , Abortion, Spontaneous/chemically induced , Acyclovir/administration & dosage , Animals , Antiviral Agents/administration & dosage , Drug Synergism , Female , Kidney/embryology , Kidney/pathology , Kidney Diseases/pathology , Liver/embryology , Liver/pathology , Liver Diseases/pathology , Pregnancy , Rats , Rats, Wistar , Zidovudine/administration & dosageABSTRACT
1. The antiviral effect of azidothymidine (AZT) can be potentiated by acyclovir (ACV), and this drug association has been used in the management of HIV-infected patients. In the present study we examined the effects of such an association on rat pregnancy. 2. AZT (60 mg/kg b.w.) and ACV (60 mg/kg b.w.) were given to groups of pregnant rats once a day from the 1st to the 20th day of gestation. 3. Maternal body weight gain was severely affected by ACV; this effect was attenuated in rats treated with AZT+ACV and was virtually absent with AZT alone. 4. The abortive action of ACV was markedly diminished in the group treated with the association AZT+ACV. 5. The deleterious effects of ACV on rat pregnancy are presumably due to its extraplacental actions, and these are, at least in part, counteracted by concomitant treatment with AZT.
