Effect of isoprothiolane on hepatic lesions of heifer caused by carbon tetrachloride.

Isoprothiolane was administered continuously of various doses to heifers with liver lesions induced by carbon tetrachloride, to determine the effect of the drug on blood components, enzymatic activities, and liver microsome functions. After injection of carbon tetrachloride, a decrease in the number of RBC and an increase in the number of WBC were temporarily observed, with few variations during the experiment. The content of total lipids, phospholipids and triglyceride in the plasma was higher in the animals treated with isoprothiolane of a dose of 50 or 100 mg/kg body weight than in the non-treated ones. Isoprothiolane of a dose of 50 or 100 mg/kg tended to increase the content of protein in the liver, and markedly depressed the increase of GOT, arginine, gamma-GTP and ICDH activity induced by carbon tetrachloride. Isoprothiolane did not promote the activity of the demethylase and hydroxylase in liver microsomes but it promoted the formation of cytochrome P-450 and b5 whose contents in the animals treated with isoprothiolane of a dose of 50 or 100 mg/kg were about twice as high as those in the non-treated animals. As for the composition of fatty acids in the microsomes, the content of unsaturated fatty acids such as oleic acid, linoleic acid and arachidonic acid was high in the isoprothiolane-treated heifers. Based on those observations, it is considered that isoprothiolane may alleviate the deleterious effects of carbon tetrachloride, protect the liver cells, and activate the lipid metabolism including the unsaturation of fatty acids, as well as the metabolism of protein.