Evaluation of the gender differences in 4,4'-methylenedianiline toxicity, distribution, and effects on biliary parameters.

Exposure to 4,4'-diaminodiphenylmethane (DAPM) has been linked to jaundice, toxic hepatitis, cholangitis, and cholestasis. In rodents, DAPM initially injures biliary epithelial cells, and toxicity is greater in female than male rats. Our goal was to determine if gender differences in DAPM toxicity were due to differences in biliary excretion or covalent binding of DAPM metabolites in the liver. Bile duct-cannulated female and male Sprague-Dawley rats were gavaged with vehicle or with 25 or 50 mg [14C]DAPM/kg, and bile was collected for 6 h. Serum and bile indicators of hepatobiliary toxicity were assessed, and radioactivity was measured in bile, serum, urine, and liver. At the 25 mg/kg dose, serum parameters were elevated only in female rats, while increases in serum parameters were observed in both genders at the 50 mg/kg dose. In males rats, biliary constituents altered by DAPM [inorganic phosphate (Pi), glucose, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT)] showed time- and dose-dependent responses. In female rats, however, biliary constituents showed either minimal dose-response effects (glucose), were increased equivalently at both doses (Pi), or were not altered by DAPM treatment (GGT). At the 50 mg/kg dose, liver alkaline phosphatase decreased in female but not male rats. Gender also affected the disposition of DAPM metabolites. At 25 mg DAPM/ kg, male rats had greater amounts of DAPM/metabolite in bile and liver, while females had greater amounts in serum and urine. These studies thus confirm that (1) DAPM is more toxic in female than male rats, and (2) gender has a significant effect on the disposition and biliary excretion of DAPM metabolites.

A minimally toxic dose of methylene dianiline injures biliary epithelial cells in rats.

The threshold for hepatotoxicity and cholestasis induced by methylene dianiline (DAPM) in rats is between 25 and 75 mg/kg (Bailie et al., Environ. Health Perspect., 124, 25-30, 1993). Our objectives were to determine if a minimally toxic dose of DAPM provided a model system for studies of selective injury to biliary epithelial cells (BEC) in vivo. Thus, we examined the effects of 50 mg DAPM/kg on (1) biliary constituents, (2) liver constituents likely involved in DAPM biotransformation/detoxification, and (3) early morphological and histochemical changes in the liver. Male Sprague Dawley rats had biliary cannulas positioned under pentobarbital anesthesia. After 1 h of control bile collection, rats received 50 mg DAPM/kg po in 35% ethanol or 35% ethanol only. Bile was collected for another 6 h. Histochemical, ultrastructural, and biochemical liver alterations were assessed at 3 h or at 3 and 6 h. DAPM had minimal effects on biliary bile salt and bilirubin excretion over 6 h. Biliary glucose and protein excretion were increased approximately 2-fold starting in Hour 1, while inorganic phosphate excretion was not increased until Hour 2. Biliary glutathione excretion initially increased (Hour 1) but then declined steadily for 5 h. Microsomal cytochrome P-450 activities were transiently decreased at 3 h but had returned to control values by 6 h. Liver glutathione (GSH and GSSG) was not affected by DAPM at 3 or 6 h. Necrosis of intrahepatic bile ducts was severe at 6 h with moderate injury in smaller bile ducts. Ultrastructural alterations were observed in BEC mitochondria and microvilli at 3 h with no apparent alterations in hepatocyte mitochondria or tight junctions between cells. In addition, histochemical staining of liver sections and assays of mitochondrial enzyme activities in vitro at 3 h revealed no loss of mitochondrial function in hepatocytes. These results provide strong evidence for defining DAPM as a selective bile duct toxicant.

Effect of hyperthyroidism on the in vitro metabolism and covalent binding of 1,1-dichloroethylene in rat liver microsomes.

Hyperthyroidism potentiates the in vivo hepatotoxicity of 1,1-dicholoroethylene (DCE) in rats, with a concomitant increase in [14C]-DCE covalent binding. The enhanced injury produced in hyperthyroid livers by DCE could be due to alterations in either the bioactivation or detoxication phases of DCE metabolism. Previous in vitro studies suggested that hyperthyroidism did not potentiate DCE hepatotoxicity by increasing DCE oxidation to intermediates which were able to covalently bind. Several factors, however, that could contribute to the magnitude of DCE bioactivation or covalent binding were not examined. Our objectives were to characterize the effects of hyperthyroidism in male Sprague-Dawley rats on: (1) covalent binding of [14C]-DCE to microsomes and other subcellular fractions, (2) microsomal mixed-function oxidase (MFO) and glutathione S-transferase (GST) activities, and (3) inactivation of microsomal enzyme activities by presumptive DCE reactive intermediates. Hyperthyroid (HYPERT) and euthyroid (EUT) rats received 3 s.c. injections of thyroxine (100 micrograms/100 g) or vehicle, respectively, at 48-h intervals; microsomes and other subcellular fractions were isolated from HYPERT and EUT livers 24 h after the last injection. [14C]-DCE-derived covalent binding was consistently greater in EUT than HYPERT microsomes. The absence of NADH, and the addition of low concentrations (0.1 and 0.5 mM), but not higher concentrations (> 1 mM), of glutathione (GSH) diminished covalent binding to a greater extent in HYPERT than EUT microsomes. Covalent binding in mitochondrial, nuclear, and cytosolic fractions of EUT and HYPERT livers was equivalent. Regression analysis of covalent binding to liver cell fractions from both EUT and HYPERT rats showed a significant correlation with P-450 content. Hyperthyroidism decreased microsomal, but not mitochondrial, cytochrome P-450 content, and MFO activities for 7-ethoxycoumarin and benzphermine were similarly decreased. Hyperthyroidism also diminished microsomal GST activity, and altered GST kinetics for both GSH and 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene (CDNB). The magnitude of inactivation of MFO and GST activities in the presence of DCE (presumably by DCE reactive intermediates) was comparable between EUT and HYPERT microsomes. When covalent binding was standardized to cytochrome P-450 concentrations in microsomes and mitochondria, HYPERT fractions exhibited slightly greater covalent binding than EUT fractions, suggesting that hyperthyroidism does not reduce the capacity of P-450 hemoproteins to bioactive DCE. Thus, potentiation of DCE hepatotoxicity by hyperthyroidism may be predominantly due to diminished Phase II constituents, and major increases in reactive intermediate/conjugates that covalently bind to and impair critical cellular molecules.

Trichloroethene-induced autoimmune response in female MRL +/+ mice.

Trichloroethene (TCE) has been implicated in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and scleroderma in humans. However, experimental studies have not been conducted to establish the role of TCE in causing autoimmunity and/or SLE. To clarify the role of TCE in autoimmune responses, subchronic studies were carried out in female autoimmune prone mice (MRL +/+). Three groups of mice (5 weeks old) received intraperitoneal injections of 10 mmol/kg of TCE, 0.2 mmol/kg of dichloroacetyl chloride (DCAC) (one of the metabolites of TCE with strong acylating property), or an equal volume (100 microliters) of corn oil alone (controls). Animals were dosed every 4th day for 6 weeks and euthanized 24 hr following the last dose. Sera and major tissues were collected and analyzed. Spleen weights in the TCE and DCAC groups increased 36% with a similar pattern of change in the spleen-to-body weight ratios. Serum IgG in the TCE and DCAC groups increased 45 and 322%, respectively. Using specific ELISA assays for mice, autoimmune antibodies were detected in the sera of TCE- and DCAC-treated mice in the following patterns: for anti-nuclear antibodies; controls, 0/4; TCE, 4/4; DCAC, 3/5; for anti-ssDNA antibodies; controls, 0/4; TCE, 2/4; DCAC, 5/5; for anti-cardiolipin antibodies; controls, 0/4; TCE, 0/4; DCAC, 3/5. An ELISA developed for the measurement of DCAC-specific antibodies using conjugated DCAC-albumin as an antigen showed the following pattern: for controls, 0/4; TCE, 0/4; DCAC, 5/5. These results suggest that TCE and its metabolite, DCAC, induce and/or accelerate autoimmune responses in female MRL +/+ mice. The greater responses induced by DCAC at a dose 50 times lower than TCE suggests that this metabolite may be important in the mechanisms leading to TCE-induced autoimmunity.

Infusion of bile from methylene dianiline-treated rats into the common bile duct injures biliary epithelial cells of recipient rats.

Methylene dianiline (4,4'-diaminodiphenylmethane, DAPM) rapidly causes cholestasis and injury to biliary epithelial cells (BEC) in the liver and common bile duct of rats. Our objective was to determine if the proximate toxicant(s) was present in bile. Bile from DAPM-treated or control rats was infused through the common bile duct of untreated rats via inflow and outflow cannulas for 4 h. Cholestasis, increases in serum constituents, and intrahepatic BEC injury in the livers of DAPM-treated donor rats at 4 h were comparable to previous studies (Kanz et al., Toxicol. Appl. Pharmacol. 117 (1992) 88-97). BEC injury in the common bile duct of rats receiving DAPM bile or control bile was assessed by point counting. Percent necrosis was > 28% in the common bile duct of rats receiving DAPM bile compared to < 5% in rats receiving control bile. These results indicate that bile is a major route of BEC exposure to DAPM proximate toxicant(s) and demonstrate the utility of a new method for investigating mechanisms of biliary toxicants.

Biliary glutathione and some amino acids are markedly diminished when biliary pressure is elevated.

We studied the effects of a transient elevation in biliary pressure on biliary glutathione and amino acids in rats. Other biliary solutes monitored were total bile salt, Pi, which is a putative marker of paracellular leakage, and glucose, which is reabsorbed from the biliary tract. Experiments were carried out on anesthetized rats intraduodenally infused with taurocholate to maintain bile flow during a 2-hr basal period, a 4-hr pressure period during which the bile duct cannula was elevated until bile flow decreased to 1/3 the basal rate, and a 2-hr period after release of hydrostatic biliary pressure. We found that pressure treatment caused biliary concentrations of glutathione to progressively decrease by 80%, while biliary Pi rapidly rose approximately 3- to 4-fold, bile salt gradually increased approximately 3-fold, and biliary glucose concentration progressively rose 15-fold. HPLC analysis of monobromobimane-derivatized biliary thiols indicated that the decline in biliary glutathione was not accompanied by an increase in its breakdown products, cysteine and cysteinylglycine. Pressure treatment led to four patterns of change in biliary amino acid concentrations: (1) increases of 29 to 76% for the basic amino acids lysine and arginine, which have very low bile/plasma ratios of about 0.1; (2) no change for the more water soluble amino acids with bile/plasma ratios close to 1.0, e.g., histidine and urea; (3) modest decreases of 16 to 48% for a variety of amino acids including serine, glutamate, and glycine; and (4) marked, progressive decreases of > 50% for aromatic and branched chain amino acids. By 2 hr after release of pressure, only the alterations in biliary glucose and some amino acids, particularly the branched chains, persisted. This is the first report of cholestasis-induced alterations in biliary amino acids.

Hyperthyroidism increases covalent binding and biliary excretion of 1,1-dichloroethylene in rats.

Distribution, covalent binding, and biliary excretion of 1,1-dichloroethylene (DCE) were examined in euthyroid (EuT) and hyperthyroid (HyperT) rats, which are more vulnerable to DCE hepatotoxicity. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were made hyperthyroid by 3 sc injections of thyroxine at 48-h intervals prior to experiments; euthyroid controls received vehicle injections. A time course study monitored the circulation and excretion of 14C-DCE label for 24 h after administration of 14C-labeled DCE (50 mg/kg in mineral oil) in serial blood and urine samples. At 24 h, total and covalently bound 14C-label were measured in liver, kidney, and lung. Hepatotoxicity of DCE was enhanced in the HyperT rats, as evidenced by elevated serum activities of aminotransferase and histopathology, and was associated with increases in circulating metabolite, and in metabolite bound to red blood cells and liver but not to kidney or lung. Hyperthyroidism had little effect on in vitro capacity of hepatic microsomes to convert DCE to reactive intermediates as reflected by covalent binding. A biliary excretion study in pentobarbital-anesthetized rats showed a striking, but transient, increase in toxicant metabolite excretion in bile of HyperT rats during the first 2 h after toxicant administration (14C-DCE, 100 mg/kg). During the next 2 h, biliary metabolite excretion by HyperT rats decreased while there was a rise in circulating amounts of total and bound 14C-label. Thus, although hyperthyroidism had little effect on the total extent of DCE metabolized, this hormonal disturbance may have transiently enhanced metabolite formation and definitely was associated with a lesser ability to detoxify reactive DCE metabolites capable of injuring hepatic cell constituents by covalent binding reactions.

Biliary excretion of marker solutes by rats with 1,1-dichloroethylene-induced bile canalicular injury.

Our objective was to characterize the effects of 1,1-dichloroethylene (DCE, 50 mg/kg) on bile formation by freely moving rats. This toxicant provides a new tool to study structure-function associations because it selectively injures zone 3 bile canaliculi of fed rats. Ultrastructural changes included loss of microvilli from the canalicular membrane and membrane fragments within the dilated canalicular lumens. Function studies compared biliary excretion of a battery of endogenous and exogenous marker solutes during a basal period versus that at 1 and 3 hr after toxicant treatment. DCE treatment had the following effects on biliary functions in fed rats: a slowing of organic anion transport into bile; a decrease in biliary total protein content; a striking increase in biliary leucine aminopeptidase, a canalicular membrane protein; and an accentuation of the early entry of horseradish peroxidase into bile without a change in the total amount of this large protein recovered in bile. In contrast, bile flow and bile salt excretion were not altered, Pi continued to be excluded from bile, and D-glucose continued to be reabsorbed from bile. The observed alterations in biliary functions and canalicular structure may ensue from the metabolism of DCE to semistable glutathione conjugates that congregate near the canaliculi en route to biliary excretion.

Methylene dianiline: acute toxicity and effects on biliary function.

4,4'-Methylene dianiline (4,4'-diaminodiphenylmethane, DAPM), which is used in the polymer industry, causes hepatobiliary damage in exposed humans. Our objectives were to characterize the acute toxicity of DAPM in liver, particularly on secretion of biliary constituents and on biliary epithelial cell gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) activity. Biliary cannulas were positioned in Sprague-Dawley male rats under pentobarbital anesthesia. After 1 hr of control bile collection, each rat was given 250 mg DAPM/kg (50 mg/ml) po in 35% ethanol or 35% ethanol only; bile was collected for a further 4 hr. Groups of rats were also examined for liver injury and biliary function at 8 and 24 hr after DAPM. Four hours after DAPM administration, main bile duct cells were severely damaged with minimal damage to peripheral bile ductule cells. Focal periportal hepatocellular necrosis and extensive cytolysis of cortical thymocytes occurred by 24 hr. Serum indicators of liver injury were elevated by 4 hr and continued to rise through 24 hr. By 4 hr, biliary protein concentration was increased 4-fold while concentrations of biliary bile salt, bilirubin, and glutathione were decreased by approximately 80, 50, and 200%, respectively. DAPM also induced a striking effect on biliary glucose with an approximately 20-fold increase. Histochemical staining of main bile duct GGT was absent by 8 hr after DAPM. Bile flow was diminished by 40% at 4 hr; three of five rats had no bile flow by 8 hr and none had any bile flow by 24 hr. These results indicate that DAPM rapidly diminishes bile flow and alters the secretion of biliary constituents and is highly injurious to biliary epithelial cells.

Biliary endogenous inorganic phosphate, D-glucose, IgA and transferrin are differentially altered by hydrostatic pressure.

Our objective was to determine the effects of hydrostatic biliary pressure on excretion patterns of endogenous solutes which reflect various pathways of bile formation. A stable in vivo model was developed using anesthetized rats intraduodenally infused with taurocholate to maintain bile flow. Bile was collected during a 2-h basal period, a 4-h pressure period where elevation of the bile duct cannula decreased bile flow to 1/3 the basal rate, and a 2-h period after release of hydrostatic biliary pressure. During pressure treatment, bile salt concentration gradually increased approximately 3-fold, biliary inorganic phosphate concentrations rapidly rose approximately 5-fold, and biliary glucose concentration progressively rose approximately 17-fold. Concentrations of proteins in bile were affected differently with extreme decreases in IgA, moderate decreases in total protein and leucine aminopeptidase, and minimal change in transferrin. By 2 h after pressure release, only the alterations in biliary glucose and IgA persisted. The observed striking and persisting increases in biliary glucose are tentatively explained as an impaired reabsorption of glucose by the biliary tract.

Biliary function studies during multiple time periods in freely moving rats. A useful system and set of marker solutes.

Biliary output of endogenous and exogenous compounds is altered by anesthesia, depletion of bile salts, and hydrostatic pressure. The described system for bile function studies minimizes these confounding factors by substantially modifying existing methods. Experiments were conducted in freely moving rats which eliminates effects of anesthesia or restraint-induced stress. Depletion of bile salts was prevented by intraduodenal infusion of taurocholate which maintains bile volume. Bile was collected in containers taped to the rat's back which minimizes hydrostatic forces induced by lengthy or elevated biliary cannulas. Animals were prepared for hepatobiliary function studies 1 week before experiments by placement and exteriorization of a jugular cannula and a bile duct to duodenal fistula. Experiments involved monitoring biliary outputs of marker solutes for various pathways of bile formation during three sequential time periods of 120 min, that is, a basal period in the morning and two experimental periods in the afternoon. We found similar patterns of biliary output in each time period for small i.v. doses of conventional exogenous markers [3H-taurocholate, phenolphthalein glucuronide, indocyanine green, and horseradish peroxidase] and for less commonly studied endogenous markers [glucose, inorganic phosphate (Pi), total protein, and leucine aminopeptidase]. This temporal stability indicates a lack of confounding circadian variability for these markers during the course of the biliary function study. Biliary excretion patterns of these marker solutes (e.g., rapid high recoveries of phenolphthalein glucuronide and low concentrations of Pi and glucose) demonstrated that our system for bile function studies is associated with intactness of the examined pathways of bile formation. These results validate our system and set of marker solutes for in vivo biliary function studies.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Ninety day toxicity study of chloroacetic acids in rats.

Chloroacetic acids are produced in drinking water as a result of disinfection processes. Chloroacetic acids are also metabolites of widely used and toxic halogenated hydrocarbons. Thus, chronic human exposure to these chemicals is likely to occur. The objective of the present study was to examine the toxic effects of monochloroacetic acid (MCA), dichloroacetic acid (DCA), and trichloroacetic acid (TCA) in a 90-day subchronic study in rats via oral exposure by drinking water. Chloroacetic acid solutions were prepared at concentrations which provided an approximate intake of 1/4 the LD50 dose per day: MCA, 1.9 mM; DCA, 80.5 mM; TCA, 45.8 mM. Control rats received distilled water only. After 90 days, major organs were removed, fixed, paraffin embedded, and stained. Light microscopic examination of the major organs revealed variable degrees of alterations in the lung and liver of all three treated groups. In the liver, morphological changes were predominantly localized to the portal triads, which were mildly to moderately enlarged with random bile duct proliferation, extension of portal veins, fibrosis, edema, and occasional foci of inflammation. In the lungs, minimal alterations were observed as foci of perivascular inflammation on small pulmonary veins. Morphological changes in the testes and brain were seen only in the DCA treated group. Testes were atrophic with few spermatocytes and no mature spermatozoa. Focal vacuolation and gliosis were present in the forebrain and brainstem. The results of these studies indicate that, relative to their respective LD50 values, DCA given at 80.5 mM is more toxic than TCA given at 45.8 mM and MCA at 1.9 mM is least toxic.

1,1-Dichloroethylene hepatotoxicity: hypothyroidism decreases metabolism and covalent binding but not injury in the rat.

Our objective was to determine if the previously reported protective effect of hypothyroidism against 1,1-dichloroethylene hepatotoxicity was associated with a change in distribution and covalent binding. Sprague-Dawley male rats were made hypothyroid (HypoT) by surgical thyroidectomy 2 weeks prior to studies and compared to euthyroid (EuT) rats. Hypothyroidism decreased body weights and liver to body weight ratios while mitochondrial non-protein sulfhydryl groups and cytosolic alcohol dehydrogenase activities were increased by 50%. Rats received a single oral dose of 100 mg [14C]1,1-dichloroethylene (DCE)/kg in mineral oil and were killed at 2, 4, 12 or 24 h; controls received mineral oil only. More rapid liver injury, as measured by serum alanine aminotransferase activity and histology, was present at 2 and 4 h after DCE in HypoT than EuT rats, but a similar magnitude of injury was evident at 12 and 24 h. DCE decreased liver non-protein sulfhydryl groups to a comparable extent in HypoT and EuT rats. Cytosolic glutathione S-transferase and alcohol dehydrogenase activities were decreased only in HypoT rats after DCE. HypoT rats excreted approximately 30% less total [14C]DCE-derived label in urine and their livers, kidneys and lungs consistently contained slightly less covalently bound [14C]DCE-derived label. In contrast, between 1 and 4 h after DCE, greater amounts of acid-soluble and acid-precipitable [14C]DCE-derived label were recovered in red blood cells of HypoT rats. Our results indicate that hypothyroidism did not protect against oral DCE hepatotoxicity but was associated with a more rapid injury at early times. Concurrently, hypothyroidism was found to change the fate of [14C]DCE with higher amounts of 14C-label recovered at early times in red blood cells while less 14C-label was excreted in urine and bound to liver.

Histochemical and immunocytochemical evidence of early, selective bile canaliculi injury after 1,1-dichloroethylene in rats.

Canalicular and mitochondrial membranes were investigated as early foci of hepatocyte injury in fed and fasted male Sprague-Dawley rats given 50 mg of 1,1-dichloroethylene (DCE)/kg. Staining of the bile canaliculi localized enzymes, leucine aminopeptidase (LAP), and Mg++-dependent ATPase (Mg++-ATPase), was examined by histochemistry in frozen sections. Mitochondrial membrane enzymes, including succinate dehydrogenase, also were examined by histochemistry. Staining of two monoclonal antibodies, C-1 and 9-B1, whose binding is localized in the bile canalicular region, was examined by immunofluorescence in frozen sections. Fasted rats treated with DCE developed moderate liver damage by 4 hours as evidenced by increases in serum transaminase and bilirubin, whereas fed rats developed only slight cell damage. Centrolobular loss of immunocytochemical and histochemical canalicular staining, especially for C-1 and Mg++-ATPase, was evident as early as 1 hour after DCE and was striking by 2 hours in both fed and fasted rats. Decreases in mitochondrial enzymes were not evident histochemically in fed animals at any time after DCE and were found only at the later times in fasted animals given the toxin. Thus, DCE administration to fed rats provides a new model system of selective bile canaliculi injury.

The use of a silastic shield to protect an externalized biliary cannula.

A simple shield made of a folded silastic sheet is described for the protection of the externalized portion of a permanent biliary cannula in rats. Advantages of this shield are its light weight, flexibility, transparency, and ease of resealing for repeated interruption of hepatobiliary circulation. Since the shield is positioned around rather than being a segment of the cannula, a single length of tubing can be used.

Protection by L-2-oxothiazolidine-4-carboxylate, a cysteine prodrug, against 1,1-dichloroethylene hepatotoxicity in rats is associated with decreases in toxin metabolism and cytochrome P-450.

Our objective was to determine if the intracellular cysteine precursor, L-2-oxothiazolidine-4-carboxylate (OTZ), would protect rats against the hepatotoxicity of 1,1-dichloroethylene (DCE) by altering the toxin's biologic fate. Fasted male rats were pretreated with 10 mmol of OTZ per kg s.c. in saline or with saline only 1 hr before administration of 14C-labeled DCE (50 mg/kg) p.o. in mineral oil. Serial blood samples were taken from permanent jugular cannulas between 1 and 24 hr to monitor the time course of injury and circulating levels of 14C-derived label. DCE caused less liver injury in the OTZ-pretreated group. This protection was associated with about 50% less total, acid soluble and acid precipitable 14C-label in serum; 30% less label in urine; and at 24 hr, 30 to 68% less covalently bound label in liver, kidney and lung. Extent of peak liver injury in individual animals correlated well with the amount of 14C-label in serum at early times and with the amount covalently bound to liver at 24 hr, but correlated poorly with label excreted into urine. An explanation for the apparent decrease in DCE metabolism by OTZ-pretreated animals was investigated by examining effects of OTZ on liver constituents known to have a role in DCE metabolism. Fasted rats given 10 mmol of OTZ per kg showed a persistent loss of hepatic cytochrome P-450 at 3 and 6 hr whereas their hepatic and renal reduced glutathione contents were transiently diminished at 3 hr.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Two cannula method for parenteral infusion and serial blood sampling in the freely moving rat.

Materials and techniques are described for positioning and exteriorizing two chronic venous cannulas in the rat. A cannula for fluid infusion is placed in the inferior vena cava via the femoral vein and exteriorized on the tail, whereas a cannula for blood withdrawal is placed in the superior vena cava and exteriorized in the scapular region. Grooming behavior and range of motion are not impeded since the cannula used for chronic infusion is shielded by a light-weight tail cover instead of a torso harness. Application of this method can minimize numbers of rats used in total parenteral nutrition (TPN) studies as demonstrated by our feasibility study in which serum parameters of liver function were serially monitored in toxin-treated rats infused with nutrient mixtures.

Potentiation of 1,1-dichloroethylene hepatotoxicity: comparative effects of hyperthyroidism and fasting.

The responses of fed, fasted, and hyperthyroid (T4) Sprague-Dawley male rats to 50 mg 1,1-dichloroethylene (1,1-DCE)/kg were compared. Hyperthyroid rats received three sc injections of thyroxine (100 micrograms/100 g) at 48-hr intervals; all other rats were sham-injected. 1,1-DCE was given po in mineral oil 24 hr after the last T4 dose; controls received only mineral oil. Animals were killed at 2, 4, and 8 hr. Liver GSH contents were lowered about 55% by both fasting and T4 while GSH transferase activities were lowered about 20% by fasting and 35% by T4. Only T4 pretreatment lowered alcohol dehydrogenase activities. Liver injury (i.e., serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase, histology) after 1,1-DCE was minimal in fed rats, moderate in fasted rats, and intermediate in T4 rats. Fasted rats showed a more pronounced depletion of liver GSH after 1,1-DCE than T4 rats and only in fasted rats did the toxicant decrease activities of the detoxification enzymes. Hypoglycemia after 1,1-DCE occurred in fed rats, but more rapidly in T4 rats. In contrast, fasted rats unexpectedly became hyperglycemic after the toxicant. Patterns of body temperature change after the toxicant, which might be due to its metabolites, were dissimilar. Hypothermia was not observed in fed rats, was only transiently evident in T4 rats, but occurred rapidly within 1 hr in fasted rats and steadily became more severe. The dissimilar patterns of liver enzyme and body temperature and serum glucose change after the toxicant in the three groups are indicative of different pathways of injury potentiation by fasting and hyperthyroidism.

Asbestos bodies in children's lungs. An association with sudden infant death syndrome and bronchopulmonary dysplasia.

Lungs from 46 autopsied children (age range, 1 to 27 months) were examined for asbestos bodies using a bleach-digestion extraction technique. Ten (21.7%) of 46 children had asbestos bodies in their lungs. Of these ten children, seven were diagnosed with sudden infant death syndrome, and three were diagnosed with bronchopulmonary dysplasia. Thus, 46.6% of children with sudden infant death syndrome and 42.8% of children with bronchopulmonary dysplasia had asbestos bodies. Impaired lung-clearing mechanisms due to either abnormal lung physiology or reorganization of pulmonary architecture may be significant in the formation of asbestos bodies. Additionally, children with asbestos bodies may have been exposed to higher ambient levels of asbestos and other pollutants.