A protein toxin from Pasteurella multocida type D causes acute and chronic hepatic toxicity in rats

Pasteurella toxin given subcutaneously to rats caused severe liver damage and growth suppression in doses as low as 15.6 ng. Toxin was lethal at and above 31.25 ng. Survival times were dose-dependent, and lesions differed with time of survival after toxin. Rats dead of acute toxicity had focal hepatic necrosis. Liver lesions were associated with diffuse endothelial damage, intravascular trapping of leukocytes, and degeneration of hepatocytes (characterized by glycogen depletion, development of vacuoles, and eosinophilic cytoplasmic inclusions). Endothelial cells, Kupffer cells, and macrophages had evidence of activation, e.g., increased cellular size with increases in Golgi vesicles, granules, and lysosomes. Rats with chronic toxicity (survival greater than 150 hr) had cirrhosis, intestinal villous atrophy, and markedly reduced body weight and fat. These data show that the rat is highly sensitive to toxins of Pasteurella multocida, and that even low doses of toxin cause liver injury and growth suppression.