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IMMUNOTOXICOLOGIC ASSESSMENT OF SUBACUTE EXPOSURE OF RATS TO CARBON TETRACHLORIDE WITH COMPARISON TO HEPATOXICITY AND NEPHROTOXICITY
Citation:
Smialowicz, R., J. Simmons, R. Luebke, AND J. Allis. IMMUNOTOXICOLOGIC ASSESSMENT OF SUBACUTE EXPOSURE OF RATS TO CARBON TETRACHLORIDE WITH COMPARISON TO HEPATOXICITY AND NEPHROTOXICITY. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/J-91/181 (NTIS PB91233445), 1991.
Description:
The immunotoxicity, hepatoxicity and nephrotoxicity of subacute exposure to carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) was evaluated In young adult (8-9 week old) male Fischer 344 rats, dosed by gavage with CCl4 for ten consecutive days at 0, 5, 10, 20 or 40 mg/kg/day. wo days following the last treatment rats were evaluated for alterations in immune function by monitoring the following: ody and lymphoid organ weights, mitogen and mixed leukocyte reaction (MLR) lymphoproliferative (LP) responses, natural killer (HK) cell activity and cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) responses. eparate group of similarly dosed rats were immunized with sheep red blood cells (SRBC) on day 9 of dosing and the primary antibody response was assessed four days later. epatotoxicity was assessed by monitoring liver weights, serum indicators of hepatic damage and hepatic cytochrome P-450 levels as well as histological evaluation. enal toxicity was assessed by monitoring kidney weights and serum creatinine and blood urea nitrogen levels as well as by histologic evaluation. ignificant increases in relative liver weights were observed in rats dosed at 40 mg/kg/day. istologically, these livers displayed mild to moderate vacuolar degeneration and minimal to mild hepatocellular necrosis. n addition, serum levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) were elevated at this dosage as well as at 20 mg/kg/day. here were no renal effects observed at these dosages of CCl4. n addition, no consistent alterations were observed in the immune parameters examined in these same animals nor in the rats immunized with SRBC. urthermore, there was no difference In the antibody response to SRBC in another set of rats dosed at 40, 80, or 160 mg/kg/day CCl4. hese results indicate that CCl4 is not immunotoxic in the rat at dosages that produce overt hepatotoxicity.