DIMETHYLNITROSAMINE HEPATIC CIRRHOSIS IN THE RAT

  • 1 January 1981
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 118  (4) , 261-268
Abstract
Chronic intoxication with dimethylnitrosamine (DMNA) in the rat induced an experimental cirrhosis which seemed stable in time. The intoxication was done by forcible feeding with 7 or 8 mg/kg DMNA, 3 consecutive days/wk for 9 wk. Chronic intoxication resulted in 50% of hepatic cirrhosis in the 7 mg/kg group and 63% in the 8 mg/kg group. Diagnosis of hepatic cirrhosis was by pathological study of the left lobe. In all cirrhotic rats, verified by histology, biological tests were disturbed significantly, compared to untreated rats but not to non-cirrhotic intoxicated rats. There was no correlation between pathological anatomy and biology. Cirrhosis persisted after the intoxication but survival duration was much shorter in the group intoxicated with 8 mg/kg DMNA. There was no difference in the constitution of cirrhosis between Wistar and Sprague Dawley strains. The best procedure to induce cirrhosis in rats was chronic intoxication by administration of 7 mg/kg DMNA for 3 consecutive days/wk for 9 wk. Pathological study was the only reliable method to determine the constitution of cirrhosis.