Quantitation of differences between spontaneous and induced liver tumors in mice with an automated image analyzer

Proliferative and nonproliferative lesions of the rat and mouse hepatobiliary system

The INHAND Project (International Harmonization of Nomenclature and Diagnostic Criteria for Lesions in Rats and Mice) is a joint initiative of the Societies of Toxicologic Pathology from Europe (ESTP), Great Britain (BSTP), Japan (JSTP) and North America (STP) to develop an internationally-accepted nomenclature for proliferative and non-proliferative lesions in laboratory animals. The purpose of this publication is to provide a standardized nomenclature and differential diagnosis for classifying microscopic lesions observed in the hepatobiliary system of laboratory rats and mice, with color microphotographs illustrating examples of some lesions. The standardized nomenclature presented in this document is also available for society members electronically on the internet (http://goreni.org). Sources of material included histopathology databases from government, academia, and industrial laboratories throughout the world. Content includes spontaneous and aging lesions as well as lesions induced by exposure to test materials. A widely accepted and utilized international harmonization of nomenclature for lesions of the hepatobiliary system in laboratory animals will decrease confusion among regulatory and scientific research organizations in different countries and provide a common language to increase and enrich international exchanges of information among toxicologists and pathologists.

Profiles of induced tumors in animals

Chemical carcinogens often induce neoplasms which differ qualitatively and quantitatively from tumors that occur spontaneously in the tissue of interest. While some experimental models have produced neoplasms indistinguishable from their spontaneous counterparts, most cause growths that are histogenetically or morphologically different, larger, more numerous, more aggressive, or of shorter latency. Induced tumors may occur in tissues where spontaneous tumors are uncommon. Cells of induced tumors may express phenotypic characteristics (e.g., membrane antigens) not present in corresponding nonneoplastic or spontaneously neoplastic cells. Conversely, some characteristics present in normal or spontaneously neoplastic cells (e.g., certain enzyme activity) may be absent in induced neoplasms. Not only may carcinogens induce tumors that differ from spontaneous ones, but the effect or a particular carcinogen may vary with the condition of its use. The species of strain, sex, and age of the host as well as the dose and route of administration are major variables. Neoplasia is one result of altered cell regulation. If we postulate a central dogma for oncogenensis, induced tumors should arise from the same molecular mechanisms that produce spontaneous tumors. Differences in "profile" reside not in the ultimate mechanism, but in the events which surround it. They result from the myriad of factors which determine the dose of proximal carcinogen to the cell's sensitive volume, together with those that modify subsequent proliferation and differentiation.

Nitrofen: a review and perspective

With the exception of occasional reports of skin irritation, 20 years of commercial nitrofen use has not produced indications of toxicity in man. In mature non-pregnant laboratory animals nitrofen is only slightly toxic after acute oral, dermal, or respiratory exposures, and it is not a sensitizer. However, absorption through skin occurs rapidly from solvent-based formulations. Chronic administration in the diet at doses of 20 mg/kg body wt/day and higher produced liver toxicity in mice, rats, and dogs with liver tumors developing in mice at dose levels at 470 mg/kg/day. In addition to liver tumors in mice, the National Cancer Institute's Carcinogen Bioassay Program also found a dose-related incidence of pancreatic tumors in females of 1 of 2 strains of rat after lifetime feeding at levels at and above 65 mg/kg/day. Single and repeated doses given during pregnancy to rats and mice produce neonatal lethality accompanied by signs of impaired breathing, diaphragmatic hernias, heart anomalies, hydronephrosis, and apparent eye anomalies which are due to effects on the Harderian gland. These anomalies were produced by both oral and dermal doses, but did not occur in the rabbit or when dosing was restricted to the male parent only. Neonatal deaths appear after repeated maternal doses of 3 mg/kg/day and higher; the overall no observed effect level for effects in the offspring was 0.17 mg/kg/day. Based on a 10(-6) level of tumorigenic risk the acceptable average daily intake for man is 1 microgram/kg/day; pregnant women should not be exposed to more than 1.7 micrograms/kg in any single 24-h period.