Biomaterial Database

Toxicity and distribution in chick embryos of 3,3',4,4'-tetrachlorobiphenyl injected into the eggs. 1983

B Brunström, and P O Darnerud

3,3',4,4'-Tetrachlorobiphenyl (3TCB) was injected into the yolk of embryonated hens' eggs in doses of 4, 20 or 100 micrograms/kg egg. Twenty and 100 micrograms/kg resulted in the death of all the embryos. The hatching rate of the eggs treated with 4 micrograms/kg was 60% while that of the control eggs was 88%. This means that 3TCB is at least 10 000 times more toxic in chick embryos than a previously studied isomer, 2,2',4,5'-tetrachlorobiphenyl (2TCB). 3,3',4,4'-Tetrachlorobiphenyl might be teratogenic in chick embryos since eye and beak deformities were seen in 3 unhatched tetrachlorobiphenyl-treated embryos. In addition rump edema and excess fluid in the body cavity was observed in some embryos. The distribution of the 2 tetrachlorobiphenyls in chick embryos was studied by means of whole-body autoradiography. No differences in distribution, which could explain the extreme difference in toxicity, were detected. High amounts of radioactivity were found in the bile of the embryos, indicating a capacity of the embryos to metabolize and excrete the tetrachlorobiphenyls.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D011078	Polychlorinated Biphenyls	Industrial products consisting of a mixture of chlorinated biphenyl congeners and isomers. These compounds are highly lipophilic and tend to accumulate in fat stores of animals. Many of these compounds are considered toxic and potential environmental pollutants.	PCBs,Polychlorinated Biphenyl,Polychlorobiphenyl Compounds,Biphenyl, Polychlorinated,Biphenyls, Polychlorinated,Compounds, Polychlorobiphenyl
D002642	Chick Embryo	The developmental entity of a fertilized chicken egg (ZYGOTE). The developmental process begins about 24 h before the egg is laid at the BLASTODISC, a small whitish spot on the surface of the EGG YOLK. After 21 days of incubation, the embryo is fully developed before hatching.	Embryo, Chick,Chick Embryos,Embryos, Chick
D000014	Abnormalities, Drug-Induced	Congenital abnormalities caused by medicinal substances or drugs of abuse given to or taken by the mother, or to which she is inadvertently exposed during the manufacture of such substances. The concept excludes abnormalities resulting from exposure to non-medicinal chemicals in the environment.	Drug-Induced Abnormalities,Abnormalities, Drug Induced,Abnormality, Drug-Induced,Drug Induced Abnormalities,Drug-Induced Abnormality
D000818	Animals	Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA.	Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D014018	Tissue Distribution	Accumulation of a drug or chemical substance in various organs (including those not relevant to its pharmacologic or therapeutic action). This distribution depends on the blood flow or perfusion rate of the organ, the ability of the drug to penetrate organ membranes, tissue specificity, protein binding. The distribution is usually expressed as tissue to plasma ratios.	Distribution, Tissue,Distributions, Tissue,Tissue Distributions