Generalized lipidosis in newborn rats and Guinea pigs induced during prenatal development by administration of amphiphilic drugs to pregnant animals

Chloroquine effects on intrauterine and postnatal dendritic maturation of hippocampal neurons and on lipid composition of the developing rat brain

The aim of the study was to analyse the intrauterine effects of Chloroquine on the dendritic maturation in the hippocampal region under considering of the lipid composition in brain tissue. 131 brains of rat pups from day 22 of pregnancy and 49 brains from offsprings from day 7 of life were investigated. The findings indicate changes in the geometric dendritic architecture of the CA3 neurons on the 7th day of life. The length of apical shaft, apical dendrites and basilar dendrites of the CA3 neurons showed a significant elongation (p < 0.05) under low doses of Chloroquine. Furthermore a early considerable formation of dendritic spines during the intrauterine period could be observed for CA1 spines at the day 22 p.c. A significant increase of the fatty acids, a reduced amount of sphingomyelines, cephalines and gangliosides was found. These results underline the fact of a mild toxic effect under a low dosis of Chloroquine in our model.

Abnormal dendritic maturation of neurons under the influence of a Tilorone analogue (R 10.874)

Tilorone analogue (R 10.874) has a close affinity to the lysosomal compartment of cells and forms a non degradable carbohydrate-lipid-drug complex accumulated within digesting organelles. Resembling biochemical and structural changes are seen in hereditary mucopolysaccharidoses accompanied with abnormal dendritogenesis. On the other hand, developmental toxicity (TERRY et al. 1992), antiproliferative effects (ALGARRA et al. 1993) and interactions with DNA (GELLER et al. 1985) are generated by tilorone. Therefore it should be interesting to know whether the amphiphilic cationic compound is able to produce an abnormal dendritogenesis as in storage diseases or an impaired arborisation of dendrites and what could be the reason for the misdevelopment. We demonstrate that there was a fetal retardation in the development of dendritic network, even under influence of low dosis of the analogue R 10.874. The dendritic dismaturation was concomitant with an increased amount of fatty acids and a slightly disarranged metabolic pathway of gangliosides. The dendritic arborisation closed the gap of retarded development between intrauterine treated and untreated rats after 7 days of postnatal drug elimination. We suppose that a fetotoxic effect and not the lysosomopathy is responsible for the reduced dendritic network.

A review of the biology and toxicologic implications of the induction of lysosomal lamellar bodies by drugs

Over 30 drugs of differing pharmacologic action are capable of inducing lamellar bodies of lysosomal origin in cells of animals and humans. The structures develop because of a drug-induced impairment in lysosomal phospholipid catabolism. Toxicity frequently accompanies the induction of these bodies. However, little information exists as to whether their development or presence is causally linked to the cellular or tissue dysfunction. This review examines the biological aspects of the induction of lysosomal lamellar bodies by drugs and considers the toxicologic implications of their presence in cells.

Influence of imipramine and chloroquine on lung phospholipid content and lung structure in newborn rats

In continuation of previous experiments in adult rats the alteration in content and composition of lung phospholipids (PL) and lung structure of newborn rats of different gestational age was studied after three administrations of the amphiphilic drugs imipramine (75 mg/kg b.w.) and chloroquine (50 mg/kg b.w.). The fetuses were obtained by Cesarean section on day 20, 21, or 22 of gestation. Morphological examinations of the lungs of drug treated 21-day-old fetuses revealed a substantially better aeration than nontreated controls. 20 and 22 days old fetuses showed no differences in aeration between drug and saline treated rats. Analogous results were obtained with respect to the 1 h survival rate of newborns. Furthermore, imipramine and chloroquine cause a premature development of the pneumocytes type II as shown by electron microscopy. An increased PL content as well as disaturated phosphatidylcholine (DSPC) and phosphatidylglycerol (PG) proportion of fetal lungs, especially in animals born on day 21 of gestation, were found after drug treatment. The results suggest an acceleration of maturation of the pneumocytes type II in fetal lungs induced by amphiphilic drugs.

Systematically applied chemicals that damage lung tissue

A large, and increasing number of drugs and chemicals have been found which are toxic to lung following systemic administration. These agents damage lung tissue specifically, or in addition to damage to other tissues. Mechanisms explaining the pulmonary damage produced by some lung toxins have been uncovered. These include concentration of the agent within lung, the absence of adequate pulmonary detoxication systems, and bioactivation to a toxic species within specific lung cells or at distant sites followed by transport to the lung. The basic biochemical lesions underlying lung damage, responses of individual lung cells and pulmonary repair processes to the toxic agent, and species and age differences in susceptibility to lung damage have not, however, been well defined for most lung toxins. This review describes the information available on pulmonary biochemical and pathological changes associated with some of these lung-toxic agents. In addition, mechanisms proposed to explain the lung damage are discussed. The agents covered include: paraquat, the thioureas, butylated hydroxytoluene, the trialkylphosphorothioates, various lung-toxic furans and antineoplastic agents, the pyrrolizidine alkaloids, metals and organometallic compounds, amphiphilic agents, hydrocarbons, oleic acid, 3-methylindole, and diabetogenic agents. Detailed reviews on the overall toxicity of many of these agents have been published elsewhere. This review concentrates on their pulmonary toxicity. Information is presented as an overview to illustrate both the extensive literature that is available and the important questions that remain to be answered about systemic chemicals that damage lung tissue.

Chlorphentermine-induced neonatal and maternal pulmonary phospholipidosis in rats

Pregnant rats were treated on Days 16-20 of pregnancy with 30 mg/kg chlorphentermine hydrochloride (CP) or an equal volume of 0.9% NaCl. Females delivered on Day 21 and neonates were examined 12 hr postpartum. Electron micrographs showed the CP neonates to have lamellar inclusions, characteristic of drug-induced phospholipidosis in Type I and Type II cells, macrophages, and nonciliated bronchiolar epithelial cells of the lung. These inclusions were either unicentric, multicentric, or consisted of whorls of membranous material. The content of total phospholipids was increased in neonatal lung as a result of CP treatment. A decrease in the percentage of total phospholipid present as phosphatidylinositol plus phosphatidylserine and an increase in the content of disaturated phosphatidylcholine were found in neonatal lung as a result of maternal chlorphentermine treatment. In maternal lung, increases were seen in the content of total phospholipids, total phosphatidylcholine, disaturated phosphatidylcholine, and phosphatidylinositol plus phosphatidylserine. A decrease in the percentage of sphingomyelin was also found. The results of this study indicate that following prepartum maternal administration of CP morphological changes are accompanied by biochemical alterations which are consistent with the induction of phospholipidosis as observed in neonatal lung. These biochemical changes were different than those associated with the induction of this disorder in the maternal lung.