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Effect of Partial Hepatectomy on the Response of Rat Liver to Aflatoxin B₁

Toxicology Unit, MRC Laboratories, Woodmansterne Road, Carshalton, Surrey, SM5 4EF United Kingdom

The effect of partial hepatectomy (PH) on aflatoxin B₁ (AFB₁) action in rat liver has been examined using adult male Fischer 344 rats. The elevated levels of hepatic DNA synthesis, present 26 hr after PH (> 15 times the control level) and 33 hr after PH, are rapidly inhibited by i.p. administration of AFB₁. The percentage inhibitions are greater than those observed using intact or sham-operated animals. However, it was possible to demonstrate elevation of DNA synthesis in PH rats treated with AFB₁. Rats 2 hr after being treated with AFB₁ (0.075 mg/kg) at 24 and 31 hr after PH exhibited levels of DNA synthesis 380 to 400% of those present in sham-operated uninjected controls. After 62 weeks, the livers of the PH rats treated with AFB₁ displayed no hepatocellular carcinoma. There was present, however, an increased incidence of lesions believed to be preneoplastic. The differences between the long-term effects of AFB₁ and other hepatocarcinogens on the livers of PH rats are discussed in terms of their relative capacities and modes of action in inhibiting DNA synthesis.

¹ To whom requests for reprints should be addressed.

² Present address: International Agency for Research on Cancer, Lyon, France.

Received 9/21/79. Accepted 8/29/80.