Effect of Hepatic Damage on the Toluene Metabolism in Carbon Tetrachloride Pretreated-Rats

흰쥐에 있어서 톨루엔 대사에 미치는 간손상의 영향

This study was performed to evaluate the effect of liver damage on toluene metabolism in rats pretreated with carbon tetachloride. Liver damage in rats was induced by administration of 0.1ml of carbon tetrachloride per 100g of body wight intraperitoneally every day for four weeks except the last day before sacrifice. One day before sacrifice, toluene was administered to the animals instead of carbon tetrachloride. Rats were sacrificed at the 1st, the 2nd, the 3rd and the 4th week after the first administration of carbon tetachloride. Based on the histopathological findings, liver weight and serum alanine aminotransferase, the $CCl_4$-preteated group was found to have gradual severe liver damage. Especially the degree of liver injury became increasingly severe throughout the whole course of the experiment. The contnts of hippuric acid in urine lower in the all groups pretreated with $CCl_4$than that of the control. The contents of hepatic cytochrome P450(CYP), benzylalcohol dehydrogenase and benzaldehyde dehydrogenase activities were decreased in $CCl_4$-pretreated rats than those of the control. The $CCl_4$treated animals showed the gradual decreased activities of these enzyme as injection times elapsed. Km values of the benzylalcohol dehydrogenase in pooled liver samples from $CCl_4$-pretreated or control groups were similar. On the other hand, Vmax values of the $CCl_4$-pretreated group was lower than of the control. Therefore, it can be concluded that reduction of the toluene metabolism in damaged rat liver induced with $CCl_4$was due to the inhibition of CYP content, bezylalcohol and benzaldehyde dehydrogenase activities which related with toluene metabolic enzyme system.