Bleomycin-induced cutaneous toxicity in the rat: analysis of histopathology and ultrastructure compared with progressive systemic sclerosis (scleroderma

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Abstract
Rats injected with bleomycin over a 58-wk period developed weight loss, alopecia, hyperpigmentation, skin thickening and skin tautness when compared with saline-injected control animals. The only significant abnormality in laboratory blood tests was an increased sedimentation rate in the bleomycin-treated rats compared with controls. Histological examination of dorsal skin showed atrophied sebaceous glands and increased collagen fibers, with diameters ranging from 37.5 to 75 nm as compared with 72.5-100 nm in control animals. Chronic bleomycin exposure produces clinical, histological and ultrastructural skin changes similar to those found in human progressive systemic sclerosis (scleroderma). [Bleomycin is an antitumor antibiotic.].