Arachidonate-enriched triglyceride oil does not promote tumor development in a rat medium-term multi-organ carcinogenesis model.

The modifying potential on tumor development of arachidonate-enriched triglyceride oil (ARA-oil) containing approximately 40% arachidonic acid was investigated in a medium-term multi-organ carcinogenesis bioassay using male and female F344 rats. The animals were sequentially given five carcinogens with different target sites in the first 4 weeks, and then administered ARA-oil for 24 weeks at dietary levels of 0% (control), 1.25%, 2.5% or 5.0%. No statistically significant differences in incidences and multiplicities of hyperplastic and neoplastic lesions were showed in the large intestine in either sex. In the liver, kidney, and lung in both sexes, and the mammary gland and uterus in females, tumor promoting potential was not evident with ARA-oil treatment. ARA-oil did not affect the quantitative data for glutathione S-transferase placental form positive foci of the liver. Increased induction of hyperplastic or neoplastic lesions in the urinary bladder and thyroid in ARA-oil-treated groups was without dose dependence. In addition, a second experiment with ARA-oil only administration for 8-week revealed no effects on cellular proliferation in the urinary bladder or thyroid in either sex. These results indicate that ARA-oil has no tumor promoting potential in any organs or tissues initiated with the five carcinogens applied in the present study.

Medium-term multi-organ carcinogenesis bioassay of ethyl tertiary-butyl ether in rats.

The modifying potential of ethyl tertiary-butyl ether (ETBE) on tumor development was investigated in a medium-term multi-organ carcinogenesis bioassay using male F344 rats. Animals were sequentially given 5 carcinogens with different target sites in the first 4 weeks for multi-organ initiation. After one week they received ETBE by gavage at dose levels of 0 (control), 300 or 1000mg/kg/day until experimental week 28. Further groups were also given ETBE at doses of 0 or 1000mg/kg/day without prior carcinogen application. Incidences and multiplicities of follicular cell hyperplasias and neoplasms in the thyroid were significantly increased at dose levels of more than 300mg/kg/day. Combined incidences of squamous cell hyperplasias and papillomas of the forestomach were also significantly increased at 300 and 1000mg/kg/day. Incidences and multiplicities of adenocarcinomas in the colon were increased at 1000mg/kg/day. The numbers and areas of glutathione S-transferase placental form (GST-P) positive foci per unit area of the liver sections, and the incidence of hepatocellular adenomas were also significantly increased at 1000mg/kg/day, along with multiplicities of atypical hyperplasias of renal tubules of the kidney and the incidence of papillomatosis of the urinary bladder. This latter lesion was also seen at low incidence at 1000mg/kg/day without initiation. Thus, the current results indicate that ETBE has tumor promoting potential for the thyroid and forestomach at dose levels of 300mg/kg/day and more, and for the colon, liver, kidney and urinary bladder at 1000mg/kg/day, under the present experimental conditions.

Concordance between Results of Medium-term Liver Carcinogenesis Bioassays and Long-term Findings for Carcinogenic 2-Nitropropane and Non-carcinogenic1-Nitropropane in F344 Rats.

This study was conducted to determine the concordance of results for a pair of structural isomers, 2-nitropropane (2-NP) and 1-nitropropane (1-NP), using the rat medium-term liver carcinogenesis bioassay (Ito test) and previously published long-term carcinogenicity tests. Male F344 rats were given a single intraperitoneal injection of DEN (200 mg/kg b.w.) to initiate hepatocarcinogenesis. After 2 weeks, they received per os 0, 0.8, 4 or 20 mg/kg/day of 2-NP or 1-NP six times a week and were subjected to two-thirds partial hepatectomy at week 3. Non-initiated groups receiving 0 or 20 mg/kg/day were also included. The animals were sacrificed for quantitative analysis of GST-P-positive foci at week 8. With the highest dose of 2-NP, significantly increased numbers and areas of GST-P-positive foci were demonstrated as compared with the respective control but were not noted with 1-NP. In the non-DEN-initiated groups, many small GST-P-positive foci of less than 0.2 mm in diameter were also induced in the rats treated with 2-NP at 20 mg/kg/day but were lacking with 1-NP. These results strongly support that 2-NP is a complete hepatocarcinogen with a potent initiation activity, whereas 1-NP is not.

A 90-day oral toxicity study of nisin A, an anti-microbial peptide derived from Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis, in F344 rats.

This study was designed to evaluate and characterize any adverse effect of nisin A, when administered to both sexes of F344/DuCrlCrlj rats (10 males and 10 females in each group) at dietary levels of 0%, 0.2%, 1.0% and 5.0% for 90 days. Animals given NaCl at a dietary level of 3.712% (equivalent to the NaCl content in 5.0% nisin A diet) served as a reference material treated group. There were no deaths, and the treatment had no toxicologically significant effects on clinical signs, body weights, food consumption, ophthalmology, hematology, or gross pathology. Statistically significant increases of water consumption, urine volume, and urinary sodium and chlorine, and decreases of urinary potassium and serum sodium, along with increases of absolute and relative kidney weight, and incidences of minimal squamous cell hyperplasia of limiting ridge in the forestomach, were found in nisin A-treated groups. It was considered that these changes were related to NaCl, since they were also noted in rats given diet containing the reference substance. Thus, no toxicologically significant changes were apparent in both sexes of F344/DuCrlCrlj rats fed diet containing 0%, 0.2%, 1.0% and 5.0% nisin A for 90 days. Therefore, the no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) for nisin A was concluded to be a dietary level of 5.0% (2996 mg/kg/day for males and 3187 mg/kg/day for females).

A twenty eight-day repeated dose toxicity study of black soybean extract in Sprague-Dawley rats.

This study was designed to evaluate any adverse effect of a hot water extract of black soybeans (Glycine max (L.) Merr.), when administered to both sexes of Crj:CD(SD)IGS rats at dietary levels of 0 (control), 0.5, 1.5 and 5.0% (6 rats/sex/group). During the study, the treatment had no adverse effects on clinical signs, survival, body weights, and food and water consumption, or on findings of ophthalmology, urinalysis, hematology, or blood biochemistry. Organ weights, gross pathology and histopathology exhibited no differences of toxicological significance between control and treated rats. Thus, the no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) of black soybean extract was concluded to be 5.0% (3,618 mg/kg body weight/day for males and 4,066 mg/kg body weight/day for females) from the present study.